Shakir Raza

A Coleraine man, Shakir Raza, has been jailed for six months following his conviction on eleven charges of sexual offences committed against two teenage girls while he was their supervisor at a fish and chip shop.

The incidents occurred between 1 January 2009 and 3 March 2009. Raza, originally from Hazeldene Drive in Coleraine and who had moved to Northern Ireland from Pakistan in 2002, was working as a manager at the establishment. The victims were young female employees under his authority. According to court evidence, Raza began by making inappropriate comments about one girl's performance at work, which escalated to physical contact including squeezing her bottom, touching her breast, and later assaulting the 'front part' of her bottom. The girl reported that Raza had a 'particular habit of squeezing her on the bum' and that she only came forward after 'he took it too far', prompted by discussions with a co-worker.

• One victim described in video evidence how Raza touched her inappropriately during shifts.
• The second girl recounted Raza deriving 'pleasure' from looking down her top as she bent over, and him using pet names like 'sexy bum' while commenting that he couldn't 'resist her curves'.

At North Antrim Magistrates’ Court, Deputy District Judge Philip Mateer convicted Raza of nine counts of sexual assault and two of indecent assault. The judge described the behaviour as sexual harassment in the employment context, stating, 'There is nothing to cause me to think that anything she says is untrue.' He emphasised the breach of trust, telling Raza, 'These were two young girls in their place and you used your authority to breach their trust. They have been adversely affected by your behaviour.' Mateer rejected Raza's defence that the allegations were fabricated due to staff dissatisfaction over reduced hours and cleaning tasks, noting Raza's claim that 'the staff were not happy about the fact that he had cut their hours'.

In his testimony, Raza denied all allegations, insisting they were 'all just fabricated just because I wasn’t really liked' and that one girl 'never worked with me'. He specifically dismissed the incident of looking down the girl's top as 'the whole thing was made up'. Despite his denials, the court found the victims' accounts credible.

Sentencing occurred on 16 February 2011. In addition to the six-month custodial sentence, Raza was made subject to a Sexual Offence Prevention Order for seven years. His defence solicitor, Neil Moore, highlighted the 'serious impact' on Raza, his wife, and two young children, noting he had been intimidated out of his Coleraine home and was living in sheltered accommodation in Belfast while undergoing psychological treatment. However, the judge attributed Raza's problems to his own 'offending behaviour' and urged him to consider the effect on his victims. An appeal was immediately lodged, and Raza was released on £400 bail pending the hearing.

The case was heard at North Antrim Magistrates’ Court, with prosecuting details aligned to the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) jurisdiction for the Coleraine area.