A Ugandan rugby player who sought asylum in Wales has been sentenced to four and a half years in prison after being found guilty of raping a woman in Cardiff.
Philip Pariyo, a former Ugandan Rugby Sevens player, first arrived in the UK in 2014 as part of Uganda’s team for the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. However, after the tournament, he disappeared from his teammates and went into hiding for months before resurfacing in Cardiff, where he applied for asylum. Pariyo claimed he was a gay man who feared persecution and possible death if he returned to Uganda.
Years later, while attending a funeral in 2021, Pariyo became close to a woman he met and later attacked and raped her in a Cardiff flat despite her refusal. During the trial, Pariyo repeatedly denied the allegations, but court documents detailed the harrowing ordeal his victim endured.
In a victim impact statement read in court, the woman described the lasting physical and emotional trauma from the assault, stating that she has struggled to recover from the experience.
The court also heard that the morning after the attack, Pariyo and the victim visited a pharmacy to buy emergency contraception. He then suggested buying condoms, implying he wanted to engage in sexual activity with her again.
Before his conviction, Pariyo had been playing for St. Peter’s Rugby Club in Roath and later worked as a waste management employee for Cardiff City Council.
His sentencing marks the end of a lengthy legal process, with the judge condemning his actions and acknowledging the severe impact on the victim.
