Anglia Ruskin student tried to rape girl while on police bail

The court heard Abel Awusah would "prowl" an area "looking for young girls or young women to pick up for sex"

A student tried to rape a teenage girl while on police bail for attacking two others, a court has heard.

Abel Awusah attacked the three girls in Cambridge between April and July 2022, shortly after arriving in the UK to study at Anglia Ruskin University.

Judge Philip Grey told Cambridge Crown Court the 20-year-old would "prowl" an area "looking for young girls or young women to pick up for sex".

Awusah, of no fixed abode, was detained for seven-and-a-half years.

He was convicted of five counts of sexual activity with a child, one of sexual assault, one of assault by penetration, and one of attempted rape.

The charges related to two girls aged 15 and a 16-year-old.

Judge Grey told the court Awusah knew the age of consent in the UK was 16 and knew or suspected two of the girls were not that age but "did not care".

He said one of the 15-year-olds was assaulted "when she pretended to be asleep".

'Serious trouble'

The court heard how in July Awusah led the 16-year-old into a secluded alleyway where he tried to rape her.

The judge told how Awusah had "not only denied it but also tried to put the blame on her".

Judge Grey said the fact he was on police bail, having been arrested twice for the previous offences, was a "significant aggravating factor" and "should have made [him] look at [his] behaviour".

"You pressed ahead anyway even though you were in serious trouble with the authorities," said judge Grey.

The judge said Awusah acted in a "sexually predatory way, seeking and taking advantage of significantly younger teenagers on the streets of Cambridge".

He said the victims "bear no blame, no guilt, no responsibility".

As well as his term detention, Awusah was given a three-year extended licence.

Det Con Natalie Marriott, who investigated, said: "In order to charge and remand someone in custody, an evidential threshold needs to be met and at the time of his first arrest on 8 May, there was not enough evidence to charge, therefore he was released from our custody on conditional bail - which included not having contact with anyone under the age of 16.

"Information was passed to us about other offences from earlier in the year, resulting in his second arrest on 12 May, where again he was released on conditional bail due to outstanding enquiries.

"A third victim reported new offences to us on 2 July, while he was on police bail, resulting in his arrest the same day and subsequent charges and remand in prison ever since."