On the evening of 29 July 2022, Daniella Carter-Wells, a 25-year-old woman from Royston in Hertfordshire, ordered a takeaway and answered her door expecting a routine delivery. Instead, Mahbubar Rahman, the former co-owner of the Royston Tandoori restaurant, forced his way into her home and subjected her to a brutal sexual assault.
Daniella recounted the terrifying ordeal, stating, 'I answered the door, he barged in and he pushed me on the floor. I didn't know what was going on and then he dragged me into the bedroom, pinned me on the bed and pulled my clothes off. I just froze in shock. I was just expecting my takeaway, and I didn't know what was going on. I thought he was going to kill me.' The assault lasted almost half an hour, during which Rahman caused physical injury, leaving Daniella bleeding and in severe pain. It only ceased when he was startled by the sound of her neighbours.
Rahman, who appeared to have prior knowledge of Daniella's personal details including her full name, daily routines, autism, and epilepsy, may have been stalking her in the weeks leading up to the attack. As quoted by Daniella, 'I don't know this guy. He's a stranger, but he knew everything about me. As he was doing what he was doing, he told me my full name, told me about where I would walk, my routine. He knew I was autistic and he knew I was epileptic because he said he witnessed me seizing.'
Following the incident, neighbours who had observed Rahman entering and leaving the property assisted in identifying him, leading to his arrest by Hertfordshire Police. Despite denying the charges, Rahman was released on bail, a decision that Daniella described as 'disgusting' due to the danger it posed. While on bail, she encountered him in a Tesco store in Royston High Street, where he smirked at her, prompting her to flee in fear.
Rahman's trial took place at Peterborough Crown Court, where in September 2024 he was found guilty of assault by penetration and two counts of sexual assault. He was sentenced to five years and nine months in prison, with an additional three years to be served on licence. The attack profoundly impacted Daniella's life; she was forced to move in with her parents, abandoned her possessions, and has been unable to sleep in a bedroom for three years, reliving the trauma daily. She waived her right to anonymity to raise awareness about the vulnerabilities faced by women with disabilities.
This account is based on reporting by Dan Mountney for The Comet, drawing from Daniella's personal testimony and court records from Hertfordshire Police.