A man from Blackburn targeted a woman in a nightclub in Bolton and was stopped in his tracks as he took her to a car park.

A woman was on a night out it the Level nightclub when her friend left to get her some water.

Bolton Crown Court heard, while she was away, the woman was targeted by Tashkin Ali.

He sexually assaulted her in the club and then led her outside.

The 28-year-old took her a five minute walk away to Nelson Square where two members of staff at another venue intervened to save the woman.

When they found her, clothing had been removed.

Ali denied his sickening conduct but a jury found him guilty of sexual assault by a jury.

He was also found guilty of theft as he stole a mobile phone to prevent her from calling a taxi.

He appeared in court to be sentenced for the offences in early 2020.

Mark Kellet, prosecuting, summarised a victim impact statement from the woman.

It said: “The offence has changed her, it has caused her not to trust people.

“She also expresses her thanks to those who assisted her.”

He also said, since the offence, Ali had committed other offences against women including one of battery.

Kevin Batch, defending, admitted the pre-sentence report had been “fairly damning.”

But he said there were two references from relatives and he was a hard worker who helped his mother with health issues.

Judge John Close said it was a “deeply disturbing case.”

He said: “I am satisfied there was a significant level of planning. That chance came when the friend left to and get water. That friend entrusted you to keep her safe.

“You successfully escorted her from the club. You took her to a secluded car park. This is a deeply disturbing case.”

He jailed Ali, from Whalley New Road, Blackburn, for six years.

He ruled that he was dangerous and imposed an extended licence period of three years and ruled he would only become eligible for parole two-thirds of the way through his prison sentence.

DS Helen Hitchen of Bolton CID said: “We commend the strength and bravery of the victim in this case. With her testimony, we have been able to put a very dangerous man behind bars.

“The actions of the staff members of a neighbouring bar, getting the victim to safety despite Ali’s persistence that they were in a relationship, is also commendable. It’s clear they recognised Ali’s lies and that something wasn’t quite right about the situation. The judge highlighted that they were a credit to themselves and commended their brave actions.

“Women should be able to go on a night out freely, without fear that something may happen to them.

“We understand our responsibility to ensure predators are identified and sent to court, but also to prevent and intervene wherever possible. Our local team spend a lot of time in Bolton’s night life, patrolling key areas, making arrests, and safeguarding vulnerable people. They also do a lot of training and education work with licensed premises, taxi companies and hotels alongside partners to ensure those working in the night-time economy can spot predatory behaviour and know how to report this to us.

“We understand that reporting sexual harassment and assaults can be traumatic and often difficult, but we are urging anyone who has suffered this kind of violence to come forward and they will be supported by our specialist officers, who are highly trained in this area.

“You will be believed and we will investigate every report that comes in.”