Abdirahman Shire found guilty of sexual assault at Broadmeadows Magistrates’ Court

A grubby rideshare cab driver told a teenage female passenger she had a “perfect body” before he touched her thigh.

Abdirahman Shire, 37, was found guilty of one count of sexual assault at the Broadmeadows Magistrates’ Court. Photo: LinkedIn.

A sleazy rideshare cabbie who told a teenage female passenger she had a “perfect body” then brushed her hand on her lower thigh, a court has heard.

Abdirahman Shire was found guilty of one count of sexual assault at the Broadmeadows Magistrates’ Court last week.

In 2021, Shire, 37, was working part-time as a Didi driver when he picked up a woman in Preston to drop her off in Hadfield.

During the journey, Shire made sexual remarks about the woman’s body saying she “got the face and body and some girls only have a face”.

The victim, who was 18 at the time, felt uncomfortable and anxious and started video recording the conversation, which was played in court, where Shire can be heard saying, “you know sometimes the beauty is only in the face...but you also have a perfect body”.

After reaching the destination the victim told Shire she had to go a bit further from the original location and showed him Google Maps on her phone, when he “momentarily” brushed his hand on her thigh.

The court heard the woman immediately rushed into her relative’s home after Shire dropped her off and told the relative the driver was “weird and inappropriate”.

A video played in court showed Shire being interviewed by police where he denied touching the woman.

“I am father of six kids, I would never do that...it can never happen, that is a big lie,” he said.

Shire’s defence lawyer said her client often made small talk with passengers in order to get a five star rating.

“My client has two engineering jobs...he is concerned a conviction will make it very difficult for him to obtain a permanent residency, he’s still on a bridging visa,” she said.

Magistrate David Langton told the court he found the remarks Shire made about the woman’s face and body to have sexual overtones.

“I find that these comments did incline a sexual interest in the complainant by the accused...I am satisfied that the touching was sexual and accordingly I find the charge proven,” he said.

Mr Langton said he accepted Shire was a “person of good character” and had a steady and hardworking employment record, and that even though the victim did not provide a victim impact statement there was a “fair assumption she suffered emotionally as a result of the incident”.

Shire was fined $2000 without conviction.