A “dangerous” predator raped a 15-year-old girl who had become separated from her friends at a shopping centre.

Rufat Kasamaj approached the girl in a bar at Westfield in Stratford saying he would help her – but instead took her to a bench where he attacked her.

But police identified and arrested Kasamaj after tracking his movements on CCTV and examining his Oyster card history.

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The 36-year-old, of High Road, Leyton, pleaded guilty and was jailed for 10 years and six months at the Old Bailey yesterday (Wednesday, October 26), with an extended five years on licence.

The “horrific” assault took place on September 4, 2021, after the victim became separated from her friends.

She was approached by a man – later identified as Kasamaj – who said he would help but instead steered her to a bench where he raped her.

He made off and the victim spoke to a member of the public who called her parents and explained what had happened, before taking the victim to her home station where she was met by her father.

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An investigation was immediately launched by safeguarding officers in Newham, who collected and reviewed CCTV showing parts of the incident.

Footage showed the suspect making his way to Stratford station, where he tapped in to get through the barriers.

The Oyster card he used was unregistered, but because the CCTV showed the time he went through the barriers, police were able to get the card number and the suspect’s travel history.

This revealed that most evenings, the suspect would tap in at North Greenwich station between 5pm and 5.30pm before tapping out at Leyton station around 18 minutes later.

Officers travelled to Leyton station on September 6, and shortly before 5.30pm a man matching his description entered the station and was arrested, taken into custody and charged.

The victim was given specialist support throughout the investigation, including a visit to the court to prepare her for giving evidence.

Detective Inspector Claudine Davie said: “Kasamaj is clearly a dangerous predator who carried out a horrific sexual assault on a young teenager who he knew was in a vulnerable position.

“He subjected her to an ordeal which will stay with her for the rest of her life and which has understandably had a huge impact on her mental health.

“She has shown real bravery in coming to court this week and reliving what happened to her that evening. Similarly we must pay a huge thanks to the member of the public who assisted her after the assault and helped her get home to her family.”

She added: “It is a top priority for the Met to target those responsible for violence against women and girls and to stop them from causing any further harm.

“I urge anyone who is a victim of rape or sexual assault to report it to police. As this case demonstrates, we will treat your allegations seriously and support you throughout the process while doing everything in our power to bring offenders to justice.”