Asylum Seeker Jailed 12 Months; Removal Expected

Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, an Ethiopian asylum seeker, has been jailed for 12 months after being convicted of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl and a woman at the Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex. The July assaults occurred days after Kebatu arrived in the UK on a small boat; he was found guilty of two counts of sexual assault, attempted sexual assault, inciting a girl to engage in sexual activity and harassment. Victims’ impact statements described lasting trauma, and the judge condemned Kebatu’s "poor regard for women." The attacks prompted large protests and counter-protests outside the Bell Hotel and at other asylum hotels nationwide, prompting local officials to seek restrictions and fuelling wider debate over migrant hotel accommodation and immigration policy. Kebatu says he wants deportation after serving his sentence, and the Home Office has indicated his removal from the UK is expected following his term.