SMALL HEATH MAN JAILED FOR SEXUAL ATTACKS
A man was found guilty of sexually assaulting an 18-year-old woman in his Birmingham home shortly after meeting her on the 'Roomies' website.Mirza Begg, aged 33, was also charged with strangulation and threatening the woman with a knife at his residence on Coventry Road in Small Heath.
During the Birmingham Crown Court trial, Begg denied engaging in full sexual intercourse, citing his diabetes as preventing him from maintaining an erection without medication, though he claimed that all other sexual contact was consensual.
The jury convicted him of rape, two counts of assault by penetration, strangulation, making threats with an offensive weapon, and assault by beating.
He showed no emotion upon hearing the verdicts and was remanded into custody until his sentencing date on December 5.
Judge Simon Drew KC ordered a pre-sentence report to evaluate whether he qualifies as a 'dangerous' offender, noting, 'On the face of it he targeted and exploited a vulnerable young woman.
It raises issues as to whether he presents a risk to other members of the public in the future.' The case originated when Begg responded to the teenager’s post on Roomies on March 17 of the previous year.
Following the attack, the victim told a friend she had been raped, which resulted in Begg’s arrest at 4:30 a.m.
The article highlights that Begg remained unmoved by the verdicts and is scheduled for sentencing in December.
It also provides information on support services for sexual assault victims, including helplines and resources from The Survivors Trust, RSVP, and West Midlands Police.
—————————————————————————————————— UPDATE 05-12-2025 A 34-year-old man has been jailed for a series of violent sexual offences after terrorising a teenager at his Birmingham flat with a stash of weapons.
Mirza Begg, of Coventry Road, Small Heath, showed the young woman a collection of knives, a sword and ammunition at his home before raping and sexually assaulting her last year.
A jury at Birmingham Crown Court found him guilty in September of rape, two counts of assault by penetration, intentional strangulation, making threats with a bladed article, and assault.
He had claimed at trial that everything which happened between them was consensual.
The court was told the victim, who is legally entitled to anonymity, had contacted Begg through the Roomies app after he suggested she could move in with him.
He collected her in a car borrowed from a relative and took her back to his flat.
Prosecutor Joshua Purser said Begg had deliberately used the app to set up a situation where he could get a woman alone in his flat with no witnesses, arguing there was “not a single moment” of consensual sexual activity despite Begg’s claims.
Once inside, Begg used the cache of weapons to frighten and control her before attacking her.
The woman was held against her will and was only able to get help by messaging a friend to say she had been assaulted.
Police then attended and “rescued” her from the address.
Begg, who has previous convictions including battery and theft, refused to co-operate with the preparation of a pre-sentence report and appeared for sentencing via video link from prison.
Judge Simon Drew KC said the six offences represented “very serious” criminal behaviour and ordered Begg to remain on the sex offenders register for life.
The judge said Begg had lied to the victim, telling her he was recently divorced and looking for someone to share his home, when his real intention was to lure her there for his own purposes.
When the woman resisted, Begg swore at her, told her to “deal with it”, and went on to sexually assault her despite her attempts to fight him off.
He slapped her and later threatened her with a knife before eventually falling asleep, allowing her to raise the alarm.
Sentencing him, Judge Drew told Begg he had deliberately targeted a much younger and “extremely vulnerable” woman and carefully planned to lure her into a situation where she was isolated and at his mercy.
Begg was handed a lengthy prison term and told he must serve two-thirds of the sentence behind bars before he can be considered for release on licence.
