Scarred acid attack victim, 20, tells court of horrific moment she had liquid thrown in her face by masked man 'in assault arranged by 80-year-old Muslim ex-lover'
- Vikki Horsman, 20, converted to Islam for pensioner Mohammed Rafiq
- She met him in 2010 and started sexual relationship with him, court told
- She chose to wear a headscarf and changed her name to Aleena Rafiq
- But she ended relationship when he became 'too controlling', jury hears
- Acid was thrown over her when she answered door at friend's house
- Rafiq, Steven Holmes and Shannon Heaps accused of inflicting GBH
- Holmes, 25, threw the acid at Miss Horsman, court told
- Miss Horsman tells court she had 'not particularly' wanted to convert
- Describes 'burning' sensation as 'masked man threw acid at her'
A
scarred acid attack victim today told a court of the horrific moment she
had the liquid thrown in her face by a masked man in an assault
allegedly arranged by her 80-year-old Muslim ex-lover.
Vikki
Horsman, 20, was left horribly burned and disfigured after she was
doused with the sulphuric acid as she went to answer the door at her
friend's house in Tividale, West Midlands.
Her
pensioner ex-lover, Mohammed Rafiq, is accused of arranging the attack
in revenge for Miss Horsman, who had converted to Islam during their
relationship, breaking up with him.
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Converted: Vikki
Horsman, 19, who converted to Islam for 80-year-old Mohammed Rafiq, had
acid thrown in her face after he allegedly arranged for the liquid to
be hurled over her as she answered the door. She is pictured left after
converting, and right arriving at court today, where the scars on her
neck could be seen
Miss
Horsman today told Wolverhampton Crown Court that she had 'peeked
around the corner of the porch door' to a hooded male caller wearing a
bandana across his face who then threw the liquid directly at her on
April 15 this year.
Speaking
at the trial of Rafiq and two other men accused of carrying out the
attack, she described how she was left 'screaming' as the acid hit her,
and had glimpsed her blistering face and neck as she stumbled back into
the house, hurriedly dousing herself with cold water from the kitchen
tap.
Earlier,
she had described the breakdown of her relationship with Rafiq, more
than six times her senior, who she had been sleeping with since she was
18.
Rafiq, whom she had known six years, had bought her a car, but became increasingly 'very controlling' she told the court.
'He often accused me of cheating on him,' she said.
Miss
Horsman, who now suffers 'terrible' scarring across her face and neck,
met Rafiq in 2010 through a friend, shortly after her mother, father and
grandmother died within a short period of time.
She
told the jury of seven women and five men how she had 'pressure put on
me' from Rafiq to convert to Islam, and change her name to Aleena Rafiq
in November 2013.
The
nursing home carer - who has since changed her name back - ended the
relationship a month later at Christmas because Rafiq was becoming 'too
controlling'.
But the pensioner continued to see the teenager as a friend and started to treat her 'like a daughter' instead, a jury was told.
Anthony Warner, prosecuting, asked Miss Horsman if had converted to Islam willingly, and she replied 'not particularly'.
The
change meant only eating halal food, adopting Muslim prayers and
changing the way she dressed as she chose to wear a headscarf.
However,
the accusations of cheating continued and after matters came to a head
in early 2014 when Rafiq went through her personal belongings, she
decided to end their relationship.
Asked by Mr Warner how the older man had taken the news, she said: 'He got very angry.
'He still thought we were in a relationship even though I had ended things.'
Rafiq
is alleged to have arranged for a lone man to turn up to the home Miss
Horsman shared with her friend, Kerry Stevens, to carry out the horrific
attack on Miss Horsman, who was 19 at the time.
Ms
Stevens, 36, was another of Rafiq's ex-girlfriends, and the court was
told she had been in a relationship with him when she was 16.
Co-defendants:
Steven Holmes, 25, (left) is accused of throwing the acid, and Shannon
Heaps, 22, (right) is also accused of planning the vicious assault
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