‘I am not a wild animal’

A man accused of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl insisted: “I am not a wild animal”, as he fought the allegation in court.

Hadush Kebatu, from Ethiopia, is accused of telling the girl and her friend “you would be a good wife” during one of two encounters in Epping, Essex, on 7 and 8 July.

His arrest led to a wave of anti-immigration protests and counter-demonstrations outside The Bell Hotel, where Mr Kebatu was staying as an asylum seeker.

He denies two sexual offences, inciting a girl to engage in sexual activity, and harassment without violence.

Giving evidence at Colchester Magistrates’ Court, Mr Kebatu said: “The girl could be my daughter, she is very young.”

Speaking from the witness box, he added: “I’m not a wild animal. These are children, the future of tomorrow, the new generation.”

Mr Kebatu said he was worried about his asylum claim and the outcome of his trial on his fellow migrants.

Asked if he told the girls he wanted to have a baby with them, he said “never”, adding that he was a sports teacher in Ethiopia.

It followed a witness giving evidence against Mr Kebatu, saying they overheard him say he was from Africa and had paid 2,500 euro (£2,155) to arrive in the UK on a “rubber dinghy”.

The trial was told the asylum seeker approached a girl and her friend, who were eating pizza in Epping town centre, on 7 July.

The witness, a boy who was with the 14-year-olds, said of Mr Kebatu: “He was mainly just interested in them two because they were girls.”

He claimed to have overheard the asylum seeker telling them: “Come back to Africa, you would be a good wife.”

It was alleged the defendant saw the girl and her friends the following day, placing his hand on her thigh and attempting to kiss her on a bench.

She told police she “froze” during the incident and told Mr 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 said on the first day of the trial on Tuesday.

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

The girls managed to leave Mr Kebatu after a woman engaged him in conversation about his CV.

She told the court on Wednesday of feeling “shocked, uncomfortable” when Mr Kebatu then put his hand on her thigh.

The woman called the police when, moments later, she saw the man talking to one of the 14-year-old girls.

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

The trial has been adjourned until 4 September.