A former magic circle employee who collected indecent videos and photos of children has been banned from working in the legal profession.
Rafikul Ashrafi, a former eBilling administrator with Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, was found in possession of 109 videos and 17 photographs after a police investigation.
In May 2021, Ashrafi pleaded guilty to one count of voyeurism and two counts of making indecent photographs of a child. He was sentenced to a three-year community order, 150 hours of compulsory unpaid work and a 25-day rehabilitation requirement. He was also ordered to sign the sex offender register for five years and made subject to a sexual harm prevention order for the same time.
The police investigation covered the period from November 2018 to June 2019. Ashrafi joined Freshfields in December 2019.
The firm became aware of his conviction the day after it happened and immediately terminated his employment and contacted the Solicitors Regulation Authority.
The SRA imposed a section 43 order against the non-solicitor, preventing him from working for any regulated firm without permission.
The regulator added: ‘[Ashrafi] has been convicted of serious criminal offences following repeated behaviour towards vulnerable minors over a significant period of time. Although he did this prior to working at the firm, it is undesirable for him to be involved in legal practice. Being convicted of such serious criminal offences is likely to damage public confidence in the safe delivery of legal services.’
