A man has been jailed for eight years for the rape of his then wife almost five years ago.
A jury at the Central Criminal Court convicted Riad Hamzi (51) last December of a single count of rape on August 19th, 2020 at a house in Cork. The court heard that his former wife, Elena O’Brien, wished to waive her anonymity to allow Hamzi to be named.
Mr Justice Paul Burns imposed a sentence of nine years on Hamzi of Elmvale Court, Wilton, Cork with the final year suspended for three years on strict conditions. He backdated the sentence to December 20th, when Hamzi went into custody.
Mr Justice Burns said the aggravating features of the case included the relationship between the parties and the impact on the victim.
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The judge said the level of violence over and above the rape was also an aggravating factor.
Mr Justice Burns said he had taken into account the mitigation including the contents of a medical report, Hamzi’s health issues, work history and that he is an “active member of his religious community” as outlined by two character witnesses called on his behalf.
The judge wished Ms O’Brien well for the future.
At a previous sentence hearing, Ms O’Brien said in her victim impact statement that Hamzi was “supposed to be my husband, the one person I could trust most in the world, the person I should feel safest with, who was supposed to love and protect me”.
“Instead, he broke all trust. He told me he loved me, but his actions showed me that he thought he owned me and saw me as a possession here to serve him.”
The court previously heard evidence that on the night in question, the victim expressed concerns about difficulties in their marriage and a wish to separate.
Hamzi told her everything was fine, then became aggressive, punching her twice in the body. He then raped her and put his fist in her mouth, telling her to be quiet.
Hamzi denied the allegation of rape and told gardaí it was consensual sex. He has a long work history and is an Algerian national who has been living in Ireland for more than 25 years.
The investigating garda confirmed to Alice Fawsitt SC, defending, that he was aware of Hamzi’s previous cancer diagnosis. A medical report was handed to the court and Ms Fawsitt said a recent scan is clear but her client has ongoing health issues.
Reading her impact statement, Ms O’Brien said she had “used his name with love and affection” for many years, but doesn’t say it any more as it is “now the name of the person who crushed me”.
She said she “gave everything” to build their life together, but their marriage was difficult and the decision to leave was not made lightly.
She said Hamzi “chose to rape me, instead of talking to me” and through his actions, “showed me exactly what he thought of me”.
“I was just a possession,” she said. Hamzi had no love or respect for her, she said, and instead believed “he owned me and could do what he wanted to me”.
She said she feared for her life in that moment and no longer felt safe. She outlined struggling with sleep, PTSD and nightmares.
She said she is “just surviving, not living” and doesn’t yet know the full impact of what happened to her.
Ms Fawsitt asked the court to take into account her client’s cancer diagnosis, the contents of medical reports and his personal circumstances.
Two character witnesses – a surgeon and a businessman – read testimonials on Hamzi’s behalf at an earlier sentence hearing.
The surgeon said Hamzi’s conviction “contrasts with the character of the man I’ve known for many years”.
He said he “always found him [Hamzi] to be a gentlemen”.
He said he’d “never seen him [Hamzi] engage in conflict with others”.
The businessman said the news of Hamzi’s conviction had “taken him aback”. He said he’d known Hamzi for many years and knew him to have “never previously been involved in any troubles with others, male or female”.
At a previous sentence hearing, the court heard Ms O’Brien asked to speak to Hamzi the night before as they were having marital difficulties. He left the house, returning at about 1am, then asked her what she wanted to talk about.
She was in the sittingroom and initially told him it was too late, then after he insisted, told him about her wish to end their marriage.
He told her everything was fine, then became aggressive, punching her twice and then raping her.
She later emailed her solicitor to tell them what had happenedbefore going to a Garda station to make a complaint.
