Migrant runner who ‘trained with Mo Farah’ accused of sexually assaulting teen after waiting for her to be left alone at bus stop

Susanna Siddell
Wed, 08 Apr 2026 15:05:05 +0000

A migrant runner who "trained with Mo Farah" has been accused of sexually assaulting a teenager after he waited for her to be left alone at a bus stop.

Abdinasir Elmi, 26, has denied both counts of sexual assault regarding an incident which is said to have occurred at around 10.30pm in Bournemouth Gardens, Dorset, on April 22 last year.

The Somalian national has pleaded not guilty at Winchester Crown Court this week.

However, prosecutors claim the 26-year-old bided his time before approaching the 18-year-old girl when her friends left her alone after a night out.

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The migrant was accompanied in court by a Somali interpreter in court.

Documents shown to the court revealed he had resided at the Roundhouse Hotel in the Dorset seaside resort.

Ahead of the alleged attack, the girl had been on a night out with her boyfriend and friends and was initially intending to be picked up by a friend's mother.

However, her boyfriend had left earlier in the evening, the court was told.

The mother was also said tp be unaware of such a plan so she was unable to take both girls – with the car only being a two-seater.

The court was told the girl was left alone when she was allegedly approached by Elmi, who guided her to a nearby bus stop.

Prosecutor Oliver Hirsch said: "Whilst all this was going on, it would appear the defendant, Mr Elmi, had been watching.

"CCTV footage from the town centre shows him standing around looking at the group of young people that were there and not really looking to engage that much with them.

"It was when [her friend] left in the car and [alleged victim] was on her own that he approached her."

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Prosecutors claimed the athlete accompanied the teenager to the station before taking her beyond to a quiet park bench in the seaside town.

At Winchester Crown Court, Mr Elmi has denied committing two sexual offences against the girl in April 2025.

The court heard she was able to "kick him off and get away" during the gruesome attack.

Later in the evening, the girl reported the alleged attack. However, she was unable to identify the individual who committed the assault.

Mr Hirsch added: "The prosecution says that in all likelihood what happened was that Mr Elmi set out that night to have sex with a young woman and didn’t much mind whether she consented or not."

So far, the defendant's up-to-date immigration status in the UK has not been revealed to jurors.

However, it is known the runner has attended Bournemouth Athletic Club from October 2024, harking back to his past life training back in Somalia.

The training club claimed that, back in his home country, he trained alongside world-class athletes – from British Olympian Sir Mo Farah to Belgian runner Bashir Abdi.

The trial continues.