Indian-origin man jailed for sexually assaulting woman on UK train
London (PTI): A 39-year-old Indian-origin man has been jailed for 16 weeks and placed on the sexual offenders register for seven years after he pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a woman while travelling on a train from Birmingham to London.
Mukhan Singh, from the Sandwell area of the West Midlands region of England, was arrested for the crime en route at Leamington station back in 2021. He entered his guilty plea at Warwick Crown Court last month and was sentenced recently.
"This was a brazen and targeted attack on a young woman who was travelling on her own and had every right to a safe journey," said Detective Constable (DC) Harris, the Investigating Officer in the case.
"Instead, she was violated by Singh, who then had the audacity to claim she had 'wanted' it in his police interview. I am pleased to see the court hand down a custodial sentence, which will allow Singh plenty of time to reflect on his unacceptable actions," he said.
According to a local media report in 'Warwickshire World', the court heard how, in September 2021, the victim, a woman in her twenties, was on a train travelling from Birmingham Moor Street station to London Marylebone when Singh began to stare at her from a nearby table seat. Singh later sat next to the victim in the aisle seat, blocking her in, before sexually assaulting her.
The victim recorded footage of Singh as he prepared to leave the train at Leamington Spa before reporting what happened to a member of staff. Singh was stopped at the station, and police were called. He was arrested by officers at the station and taken to police custody.
After his arrest and during his police interview, the accused claimed that the victim "wanted something done to her".
"We take all reports of sexual offences seriously and will support victims throughout our investigations as we work tirelessly to bring offenders to justice," added DC Harris.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
