Pakistani immigrant guilty of raping deaf girl

An elderly Pakistani immigrant was convicted Wednesday of sexually assaulting a deaf-mute girl he and his wife brought to Britain from their homeland. Two women on the jury cried as the verdict was delivered, the Daily Mirror reported. They had listened to horrifying details during the trial in Manchester of how the girl was kept in a cellar, forced to do housework, cheated of her benefits and repeatedly raped by Ilyas Ashar, 84. The victim was unable to give police investigators details until she had been taught some sign language. She used sign language to testify during the trial. Ashar was jailed immediately. Judge Peter Lakin told him he should be prepared for a lengthy prison term. His wife, Tallat Ashar, was convicted last year of human trafficking. Investigators said while the couple were treating the girl as a slave they were collecting 30,000 pounds ($48,000) a year in benefits for her. The girl was found in 2009 sleeping on a cot in the Ashars' basement in Salford. She is believed to be in her early 20s now, and officials say she lives "semi-independently," is studying at a college and enjoys simply being able to get out to ride the bus.