Epping hotel asylum seeker found guilty of sexually assaulting 14-year-old girl just days after arriving in Britain

He was found to have attempted to kiss a teenage girl in Epping, Essex, and put his hand on her thigh and brush her hair in July after she offered him pizza on July 7 and 8.

Separately, he was found guilty of trying to kiss an adult woman and put his hand on her leg.

Kebatu, wearing a grey prison-issued tracksuit, shook his head as summaries of the charges were read out at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court.

One of the teenage victims was said to be “clearly distressed and embarrassed” by what she told to the police when reporting the abuse.

Kebatu, who was a "teacher of sports" in his home country, denied the alleged incidents near the Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex.

He told Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court during the trial that he was "not a wild animal" and insisted that "nothing happened".

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Summing up the prosecution’s case, the court heard about how the teenage girl told the police about the incident and that she said to Kebatu “no, I’m 14” during the encounter.

Prosecutor Stuart Cowen said that he was happy to concede there were “inconsistencies” in witness statements, but stressed that they were children, and that there were consistencies in the “important details,” such as Kebatu’s alleged harassment and requests for the girls to come back to the Bell Hotel in Epping.

Kebatu, 38, heard proceedings via a Tigrinya interpreter.

The incident sparked protests and counter-protests outside the Hotel in Essex with similar protests held outside hotels across the country which were housing asylum seekers.

District judge Christopher Williams asked if Kebatu had a “good character” recommendation, which the prosecution confirmed.

In response, Kebatu’s defence said that “when this case is stripped back to its bare bones, the crown can’t get away from the fact that it’s plagued with inconsistencies.”

Molly Dyas said that Kebatu “disputes most of the alleged interaction with this group of children”.

She said he did not accept he called the girl “pretty” or made any of the alleged comments, except for greeting them.

“He doesn’t accept eating pizza with the group or making any physical contact with anybody,” she said.

Ms Dyas argued that despite Kebatu being here for only a few days before the incidents, the prosecution had “gone to great lengths to check with all the countries he came through” for its recommendation of his good character.

The court had earlier heard Kebatu made inappropriate comments to the 14-year-old girl, including "come back to Africa, you would be a good wife" and "do you want to come to the Bell Hotel to have babies then we could go to Kenya with each other".

An adult member of the public was also sexually assaulted by the man on July 8 during an incident in which he touched her leg and tried to kiss her when she offered to help him with his CV.

The woman said she felt "shocked" and "uncomfortable" by Kebatu's behaviour.

The adult victim told the court she confronted the man when she saw him talking to a "young schoolgirl".

Following the decision, East of England Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor with CPS Rebecca Mundy said the incident "became a cause of deep concern for the local community".

"Our prosecutors worked carefully and impartially to bring this case to justice according to the law," she said.

"Close and effective collaboration between Essex Police and our out-of-hours prosecution team ensured Kebatu was promptly arrested, charged and remanded.

"The CPS is determined to pursue justice for victims, working with our law enforcement partners to hold sex offenders accountable."

Essex Police Assistant Chief Constable Stuart Hooper paid tribute to "both our young ... and our adult victim" along with witnesses who came forward to ensure the "evidence put before the court was strong and true".

"It is because of their accounts of what happened, and the close co-operation with our Crown Prosecution Service colleagues, that we have been able to secure this conviction," he said.

"We’re acutely aware that this incident has attracted widespread public interest. We have always said that we treat and investigate every report made to us without fear or favour."

Mr Hooper said the investigation was "solely" about gathering evidence for Kebatu's actions of July 7 and 8.

"This is what we do, all year round; we respond when people need us, we investigate crimes and we achieve convictions which protect the public – all without fear or favour," he said.

"We understand the strength of feeling in our community, but no crime should become an excuse for the disorder we have seen at times in Epping."

Responding to the guilty verdict in the Kebatu sexual assault case Shadow Home Office Minister Katie Lam said: "The crimes of this illegal migrant are shocking and heartbreaking and the victims have shown incredible bravery.

"This case shows the very real risks of housing illegal migrants in hotels and allowing them to roam around communities freely."

"This must never be allowed to happen again. Every illegal migrant should be detained immediately and swiftly deported. Anything less leaves vulnerable people at risk, betrays public trust, and sends entirely the wrong message about how seriously Britain takes border security."

Judge Williams took just 30 minutes to deliver his guilty verdicts for two counts of sexual assault, one count of attempted sexual assault, one count of inciting a girl to engage in sexual activity and one count of harassment without violence.

Kebatu is set to be sentenced on the 23rd of September at Chelmsford Magistrates' Court.