Want more news from across Surrey? Sign up to our daily newsletter! Sign up for free Thank you for subscribing See our privacy notice Invalid Email

A Tory MP hopeful and current Spelthorne borough councillor has been found guilty of five counts of assaulting his former girlfriend.

Cllr Asif Ayub, Conservative ward member for Ashford East, learned his fate when a two-and-a-half day trial at Ealing Magistrates' Court ended on Thursday (July 3).

He had been originally charged with six counts of assault between August and October last year, but one was dropped when the Crown failed to provide enough evidence.

Ayub will be sentenced on August 4.

During the trial, the court heard bad character evidence regarding a previous assault against his ex-wife in 2011 and a non-molestation order she took out against him in 2012.

Martin Edwards, prosecuting, argued the character evidence should be admissible given that much of Ayub’s defence consisted of claims of his girlfriend, Yasmin Guerin, being the aggressor and that her conduct was "reprehensible".

District Judge Stephen Day heard that in April 2011, Ayub's former wife went to Staines police station displaying reddened checks and scratches on her arms.

Then in 2012, she filed a non-molestation order against the councillor, which forbade him from harassing, or using violence against, Mrs Ayub.

'More powerful than her'

Mr Edwards, cross-examining Ayub, said: “You were married, you’ve got an important job but your defence to these allegations is that you were being battered and beaten by Yasmin Guerin, and you expect us to believe you that you decided to do nothing about it."

“Had you been an 18-year-old that might have washed, but you are an experienced man. You would tell the police straight away.

“You are very sizeable, strong, and more powerful than her.”

Ayub, 49, of Westbury Avenue, Southall, attacked his partner four times in his own home, two of the incidents taking place the morning before he was due to go to a reception dinner in Downing Street attended by Prime Minister David Cameron.

The fifth happened at the Sacha Britannia Hotel in Manchester as he attended the Tory party conference.

Recalling one of the attacks, Miss Guerin, who believed Ayub could be helped, said: "I definitely had second thoughts about leaving.

"Maybe there was the understanding that he came so far, that he came so close to murdering or injuring me. That we would have a chance of peace."

She added: “Asif is in a political position.

“He shouldn’t be in that type of position because he is not the right person to be in that position.

“But then I thought it was best to go the legal route as he could get help and I could get justice."

Bruising

The court then heard that Ayub had been contacted by the Parliamentary Assessment Board (PAB) to judge his suitability as a potential MP.

Miss Guerin said: “He was hoping for that call for a number of years. It was very important for him.

“He couldn’t control himself, he even put at risk to his opportunity to the PAB because he couldn't control himself.

“He was going to risk every opportunity that he has worked so hard for."

The defence accused Miss Guerin, 5ft 3in tall and a size 8, of being the violent party in the relationship and that if Ayub, 5ft 10in tall and 15 stone 4lb, had left her she would go to the police and claim he had raped her.

Richard Gowthorpe, defending, produced a picture dated November 4, a week after the pair split, claiming Ayub had been beaten and bruised by Miss Guerin.

But on the final day of the trial, evidence was produced by the prosecution showing photographs published on the Conservative Muslim Forum and on other social networking sites which suggested there was nothing physically wrong with Ayub at that time.

The case hinged on agreed evidence read to the court from Tara Hewitt and Zahide Cinar, who said they saw a change in Miss Guerin’s behaviour after she began seeing Ayub as well as noticing gashes on her face and bruising to her back and legs.

'Clear corroboration'

Delivering his verdict, District Judge Stephen Day said: "The defence case is simple - it never happened.

"In court he [Ayub] said he was the victim of domestic violence throughout the relationship.

"I was asked to find it credible that the complainant should be quite so happy and cheerful at the party conference, but the same then could be said of the defendant.

"They both had reasons to put on a brave public face.

"There was clear corroboration that the claimant had injuries. No explanation was put forward by the defence.

"The defendant was a man of no previous convictions or warrants, but a bad character application was made and accepted.

"He was the subject of a court order. In short, the complainant's evidence is corroborated by the two supporting witnesses.

"I find Mr Ayub guilty on counts one to five."

Speaking through his lawyer Mr Gowthorpe, Ayub said that justice had not been done.

"There will be an appeal," Mr Gowthorpe added.