Nepal UK
London – The Cambridge Crown Court has handed down a sentence of 25 years on jail to a Nepali man convicting him for rape and sexual misconduct.
Pramod Dhakal, 49, has been found guilty of abusing seven girls and a woman over the last 17 years.
The 49-year-old Dhakal, who lived in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, was found guilty of 25 sexual offences with an extended period on licence of eight years.
The offences included five counts of rape of a child under 13 and two of rapes of a child over 13.
Prosecutor Claire Matthews told the court one of the rape victims described Dhakal as a "second father", but "remembers the feeling of helplessness" and said he "told her it won't take long".
In her victim impact statement, she said the "emotional manipulation silenced me for years", adding that "he taught me the truth would do more harm than good".
"Pramod Dhakal chose to abuse me as a child. The consequences didn't end when the abuse stopped," she said.
Another victim said: "I thought I was the only one, we all did."
The court heard that while the majority of his offending took place in Peterborough, one victim was abused in London.
Several of his victims had reported mental breakdowns, the court was told, according to a BBC news report.
Judge Mark Bishop told the court that Dhakal, who had no previous convictions, continued to deny his guilt.
"You knew these girls would not tell their parents about what they were doing," he told the defendant.
He said a pre-sentence report found some "victim blaming" and "quite bizarrely... [Dhakal had] taken credit for the achievements of his victims in later life".
Det Con Phillipa Mallett, who was commended by the judge for her investigation, said: "This case highlights that no matter when the abuse happened or when you feel comfortable to share your story with the police, we take reports of this nature extremely seriously.
"I hope this outcome brings closure to the survivors of Dhakal's abuse. I commend them on their bravery for coming forward and potentially stopping further children being exploited."
According to a Nepali community member who knew Mr Dhakal, Pramod came to the UK as a student in 1997 and acquired Indefinite Leave of Remain (ILR) after nearly ten years.
He started running a restaurant since around 2009.
“He was not that active in social activities, performed religious ceremonies sometimes but helped some families out of the way whose children later became victims,” the community member told NepalUK.com
