Epping hotel resident guilty of sex assault of girl

A man whose arrest led to protests outside a hotel in Epping has been found guilty of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl and a woman.

Hadush Kebatu, from Ethiopia, touched the girl and said he "wanted to have a baby" with her during incidents in Epping, Essex, on 7 and 8 July.

His arrest led to a wave of demonstrations outside The Bell Hotel, where Kebatu was staying as an asylum seeker.

A judge at Chelmsford Magistrates' Court also found him guilty of harassing the girl, inciting her to engage in sexual activity and an attempted sexual assault, and warned him to expect a prison sentence.

Kebatu attempted to kiss the girl and placed his hand on her thigh, as well as asking her to kiss another child in front of him, the court heard.

When a woman intervened he also placed his hand on her thigh, which she said made her feel "shocked, uncomfortable", before she called the police.

Kebatu told the judge he had been living at The Bell Hotel for about a week before his arrest, having travelled through Sudan, Libya, Italy and France to get to the UK.

He insisted during his three-day trial he was "not a wild animal", adding: "I can't do these kind of things, this is anti-Christian – these are just children, innocent children."

But District Judge Christopher Williams said Kebatu created "a version of events he'd only decided upon when he took the witness stand".

The judge accused Kebatu of making up his version of events moments before giving evidence

During the trial, one witness told the court he heard Kebatu telling the girls "come back to Africa, you would be a good wife" on 7 July.

They had been eating pizza in Epping town centre when they were propositioned by the defendant, who invited them back to The Bell Hotel.

"Out of nowhere, he said: 'I want one baby from you and one baby from your friend'," the girl told police.

Tensions have been high over the housing of 138 asylum seekers at The Bell Hotel in Epping

Kebatu was then seen telling her she was pretty and attempting to kiss her on a bench the following day, before placing his hand on her thigh.

She told detectives she "froze" during the encounter and told Kebatu "no, I'm 14", but claimed he responded "age did not matter".

"I felt sick to my stomach. I didn't think a fully grown man would think it was OK to do that," she added.

'Shocked and uncomfortable'

Kebatu was overheard telling the girls he was from Africa and paid €2,500 (£2,155) to arrive in the UK on a "rubber dinghy", the court heard.

At the trial, he gave his date of birth as December 1986, making him 38, but court records suggested he was 41.

Hadush Kebatu will be sentenced on 23 September

At an earlier hearing Judge Williams heard Kebatu had arrived in the UK by boat.

Kebatu told the judge he was a "teacher of sports" in his home country and described children as "the future of tomorrow, the new generation".

However, the judge said Kebatu became "visibly aroused" when he asked the girl to kiss another child in front of him on 8 July.

He was stopped from talking to the group by a woman who intervened, who engaged him in conversation about his CV.

She told the court of feeling "shocked, uncomfortable" when Kebatu then put his hand on her thigh, before calling the police.

Her 999 call was played to the court, in which she could be heard screaming: "Get away from them kids."

Delivering his verdict, Judge Williams said: "You knew that she was only 14 years old," he said to the defendant about his victim, adding she was wearing her school uniform on the second encounter.

Kebatu was warned he faced an "immediate custodial sentence" when he returned to court on 23 September.