Mohamed Iidow raped NHS worker Natalie Shotter “again and again” as she lay unconscious. The 37 year old had a heart attack as Iidow attacked her in west London
A man who raped and killed a vulnerable NHS worker “again and again” until she died has been jailed for life for what his victim’s mother described as his “horrific” act.
Mohamed Iidow had repeatedly sexually assaulted 37-year-old Natalie Shotter while she was passed out in a bench in Southall Park, west London, after a night out. Prosecutor Alison Morgan KC said Ms Shotter had died of a heart attack caused by Iidow raping her “again and again”. Today he was sentenced for rape and manslaughter, getting a life sentence with a minimum of 10 years eight months.
Earlier, CCTV footage was shown of mum-of-two Ms Shotter sitting on a bench with a different man when the defendant walked past and looked at them. Iidow then left the park and drove away in his car before he returned, jurors heard. Ms Shotter was lying down, showing “no clear movement” for around half-an-hour before the defendant approached her “nonchalantly”, Ms Morgan said.
During the attack, the victim had been “deeply unconscious”, she said. Further CCTV showed the defendant moving Ms Shotter’s body around in different positions as he raped her. Afterwards, the defendant drove back to his home in Hounslow, west London, via a Shell garage where he stopped to buy cat food and mouthwash.
Ms Shotter was found dead by a passer-by in the park in the early morning of July 17 2021. Swabs taken from her mouth area matched DNA samples taken from the defendant. Ms Morgan had rejected any suggestion that Ms Shotter was already dead before she was assaulted by Iidow.
Ms Shotter was particularly vulnerable on the night she was attacked, the court heard. She was just over 5ft tall and weighed just over six and a half stone (43kg), jurors were told. Ms Morgan said the mum had been drinking, and may have also inhaled amyl nitrate – also known as poppers – but insisted that the legal high did not cause her death.
“The prosecution’s case is that consuming substances made Natalie all the more vulnerable”, she said. “It did not cause her death, but it may well explain how it was that she came to be on that bench in the park, on her own, in the middle of the night, lying on her side, vulnerable to males in that park.”
In CCTV played to court, Ms Shotter was captured walking through the streets and talking on her phone. She was then seen stopping outside a shop to dance to the sound of a drum, with a man and two other women joining her.
Ms Morgan said Ms Shotter did not appear drunk enough to be unable to stand or struggle to walk, adding she appeared “happy”. Jurors were told they will be played further CCTV footage showing Mohamed assaulting her in the park.
She told jurors: “The prosecution’s case is that Natalie died as a result of what was done to her by this defendant. She was not dead at the time when the defendant was orally raping her, it will be a matter for you to consider – that this defendant went to the park for a reason.
“He would not have sought to have sex with a dead body for over 15 minutes, he was having sex with someone he knew was alive but was deeply unconscious and therefore he was raping her.” Iidow had denied the charges against him but declined to give evidence.
Jurors were not told of 35-year-old Iidow’s previous conviction for sexual activity by seeking to groom young people online.
Today, her mother, Dr Cas Shotter Weetman, a lead specialist nurse in cardiology, told the court it is ‘disgusting’ women have to fear going to a park and sitting on a bench. In a victim impact statement read to court she her daughter was “compassionate and had a good heart”.
“In her last job she worked in clinical administration in a local hospital. She was brilliant at her job and loved by those who worked with her. Her baby was just a year old when her mother was killed.
“The day I found out what happened to Nat I felt absolutely sick. I was a five hour drive from London so police had to tell me on the phone. I sat down hard on the floor and listened in absolute shock.
“As a mother I then had to make the decision about whether to delay the postmortem to get back and see her first. I knew something bad had happened so I had to let them do the postmortem before I could see her.
“I have been through all the stages of grief especially anger and I then had to later learn from the police by daughter had died in these horrific circumstances. When Mohamed Iidow was finally charged I was so glad but I realised everything was still to come.
“It took years for the case to come to trial. I had to put on a different persona at work, in healthcare dealing with patients who have their own troubles. I can’t even explain how unbearable the last few years been.”
She added that she had to watch CCTV footage of her daughter being raped in court. “No mother should ever have to see that.” Speaking directly to Iidow she added: “Hearing medical evidence of how you caused my daughter’s death destroyed my family. I felt such anger my daughter had gone to the park on a night out enjoying herself and was assaulted by a predator.
“No woman should have to fear going to a park and sitting on a bench – it is disgusting. Why did you not stop yourself and think what am I doing? You preyed on a vulnerable woman. Her killing has left gaping holes in the lives of everyone who loved her.”
Her father Andrew Shotter said he missed his ‘feisty’ daughter every day. He said: “Sitting through the trial and hearing details of what happened to Natalie was something I cannot cope with. I knew I couldn’t face seeing what happened to her on that bench and left court each time. Hearing what happened in the last moments of her life was horrific.”
Her brother Harry Shotter, who now looks after her two older children, said: “For the rest of my life I am faced with never seeing my sister again, to never laugh at our bank of private jokes or our lifetime of shared experiences.”