InfoMigrants

An Ethiopian asylum seeker was sentenced to 12 months of detention on Tuesday for a series of sexual assaults he perpetrated, one against a 14-year-old girl. Prior to the arrest, the man had been staying at the Bell Hotel in Essex, and his actions sparked a wave of protests across Britain outside hotels used to house asylum seekers, as well as sparking debates about migrants and crime.

"A man who was arrested within minutes of sexually assaulting a teenage girl in Epping has today been jailed," Essex police stated in a press release on Tuesday (September 23).

The 41-year-old Ethiopian asylum seeker, named as Hadush K. received the maximum sentence (12 months) that can be issued by a magistrate’s court on Tuesday, after being found guilty of sexual assaults against a woman and a 14-year-old girl.

In all, he was found guilty of two counts of sexual assault, one count of attempted sexual assault, one count of inciting a girl to engage in sexual activity and on count of harassment without violence.

A screengrab provided by the CPS taken from the body cam of one of the arresting officers at the time of Hadush K's arrest on July 8, 2025 | Source: Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) press office

Hadush K. was also made the subject of a five-year sexual harm prevention order, which bans him from approaching or contacting any female, and he will be put on the UK sex offenders' register to ten years, "which means he will be subject to strict monitoring for the whole of that time," stated Essex Police.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said they were able to challenge his 'not guilty' plea at the start of the trial with a combination of video evidence and witness testimony. Although the two women who were assaulted did not know one another, their accounts were "strikingly similar accounts of the words and actions Hadush K. used."

Arrest and trial

The asylum seeker was arrested near the beginning of July, after Essex police received reports that a man had been behaving "inappropriately towards a teenage girl." Reports on the BBC say the girl and her friends were still dressed in their school uniforms and so it was clear that they were minors when they were approached by Hadush K.

A screen grab from a CCTV camera, showing Hadush K. walking on the street in Epping on the day some of the incidents he was convicted of occurred. Video evidence, including this, was used by the CPS to convict him | Source: Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) press office

An investigation began and officers then discovered that Hadush K. had also committed separate offenses the day before, which were then reported.

During the trial, it transpired that Hadush K. had sexually assaulted an adult woman, who had offered to help him with his CV, as well as attempted to kiss the teenage girl on a bench the day before he was seen again approaching the girl. He also asked her to kiss him, the court was told and "made numerous sexually explicit comments."

File photo: A heavy police presence had to be installed at the Bell Hotel in Epping after details of Hadush K.'s case were made public and protests ensued against migrants and asylum seekers across the UK and outside the hotel in Essex | Photo. Yui Mok/PA Wire / picture alliance

On July 8, when Hadush K. was arrested, he "encountered the same girl and again tried to kiss her before sexually assaulting her." He also made further sexually explicit comments despite being told the girl’s age and the fact that she was wearing her school uniform.

The police said that it was the adult woman, whom Hadush K also attempted to kiss, who called police when she saw him acting inappropriately with the teenage girl, and he was quickly arrested.

Police praise 'bravery' of women assaulted

Essex Police Assistant Chief Constable Stuart Hooper said in a statement that the conviction was "achieved because of the bravery of two women who were the victim of sexual offenses and felt they could come to us for help."

File photo used as illustration: Police praised the bravery of the two women who were assaulted (not pictured) saying their testimony helped convict Hadush K. | Photo: Yui Mok/PA Wire / picture alliance

In a statement read in court by the prosecutor, the 14-year-old girl communicated that her school uniform now makes her feel "exposed" and that "every time I go out with my friends, I am checking over my shoulder," reported the BBC.

During the sentencing, District Judge Christopher Williams is reported to have called Hadush K "manipulative" and also referred to the "impact of his offenses on other asylum seekers at the Bell hotel since his arrest," reported the BBC.

The judge told Hadush K. that he believed that he "knew full well she was only 14 years of age… not only had she told you this, her friends were wearing school uniform."

Case sparked protests across the UK

Prior to his arrest, Hadush K. had been staying at the Bell Hotel in Epping. It was news of his arrest that really kicked off the wave of protests over the summer against migrants, not just in Epping, but at sites across the UK.

People holding placards, outside The Bell hotel in Epping, Essex, England, where local residents are protesting against the housing of migrants, July 20, 205 | Photo: Jacqueline Lawrie/London News Pictures via ZUMA Press Wire

Hooper also addressed the demonstrations in his comments following the sentencing, saying: "Many people have wanted to make their voices heard legitimately on these issues. Some, however, have used them as a reason to commit crime and to carry out disorder and that’s not acceptable. No crime can become an excuse for what we’ve seen at times in Epping throughout the summer."

Hadush K’s defense lawyer Molly Dyas said that her defendant’s "firm wish is to be deported as soon as possible." Dyas added that Hadush K. claimed to be suffering with his mental health, reported the BBC.

No reaction when sentenced

The judge also mentioned before delivering the sentence that Hadush K had tried to take his own life while in prison, but that nevertheless, he could not win a suspended prison sentence because there was "no realistic prospect" of rehabilitation, and moreover he poses a "significant risk of reoffending," reported the BBC.

During the hearing, Dyas said that Hadush K’s journey towards the UK had been "difficult and lengthy" and that he had arrived on a small boat in Britain, by crossing the Channel from the French coast.

According to BBC reporters present at the sentencing, Hadush K. "didn’t react as his fate was confirmed."

Opposition calls for 'immediate deportation'

The opposition Conservative party called for Hadush K.’s "immediate" deportation. "The reality is this vile crime should never have been allowed to happen," said Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp, who when his party was in power also worked at the Home Office, serving some time as immigration minister.

Philp, whose party expanded the use of hotels to house asylum seekers when in power, stated, according to the BBC, "illegal immigrants should not be housed in hotels, they should be deported."

File photo: Many are calling for Hadush K and others who commit crimes to be 'immediately deported', the government says they will be taking 'deportation action' against him | Photo: Jacqueline Lawrie/London News Pictures via ZUMA Press Wire

InfoMigrants asked the Home Office for comment, specifically questioning whether it is government policy to deport a migrant or asylum seeker convicted of a crime before they have served their sentence in the UK, as well as for more details in Hadush K.’s case.

A Home Office spokesperson said: "It is our longstanding policy not to comment on individual cases, but when foreign nationals commit serious crimes in our country, we will always do everything in our power to deport them."

They added that since taking power in July 2024, "this government deported almost 5,200 foreign national offenders in its first year in office, a 14 percent increase on the previous year, and we will continue to do everything we can to remove these vile criminals from our streets."

Government confirms 'deportation action' will be taken

In information provided in an email, the Home Office confirmed they would be "taking deportation action" against Hadush K. and added that "the Home Office conducts returns and deportations to Ethiopia regularly."

A date for that deportation has not been confirmed. However, the Home Office also provided background information from the Ministry of Justice in the email. This included confirming that in May, the Independent Sentencing Review [a commission that looks into sentencing and laws and advises the government] recommended a law change so most foreign prisoners could be deported after serving 30 percent of their prison time, rather than 50 percent.

File photo: Hadush K.'s case fuelled a summer of protests across the UK, including a 'Unite the Kingdom' rally in London on September 13, organized by the far-right activist known as Tommy Robinson | Photo: Jaimi Joy / Reuters

The government then used this recommendation to introduce secondary legislation in June, which came into force on September 23. At this point, prisoners with no right to be in the country will face deportation, with 30 percent of their prison sentence being served, rather than the current 50 percent.

New legislation intends to speed up deportations in the future

A sentencing bill, which is currently going through parliament and is only in the first stages of its hearings, also proposes for changes to the law. If passed, the new legislation would allow for the immediate removal from prison of convicted eligible foreign criminals for the purpose of immediate deportation, without having to serve a minimum portion of the sentence in prison in England or Wales.

File photo: Protesters across the UK claimed they were trying to 'save our kids' and 'protect women' from the danger they claim could be posed by some migrants or asylum seekers | Photo: Yui Mok/PA Wire / picture alliance

Any changes to the removal scheme would then apply to all foreign national offenders already in custody, as well as those newly sentenced.

The Ministry of Justice underlines that the early removal scheme only applies to eligible serving determinate sentences. (A determinate sentence is the most common form of sentence in the UK and denotes a sentence with a fixed amount of time in prison.)

The Home Office did not respond to InfoMigrants' questions on whether, after deportation, it sought assurances from the receiving country that the deportees would serve the rest of their sentence there.