Teenager found guilty of sexually touching child refugee in London hotel

A teenage boy has been convicted of sexually touching a child refugee in the bedroom of a London hotel housing asylum seekers.

The defendant, an asylum seeker from Afghanistan, was found guilty of taking a 12-year-old boy to his room, kissing him 30 times on his face and neck and pushing him on to a bed at least 10 times as he tried to leave.

The victim’s mother described him as “distressed and crying” after he managed to get back to his family’s room.

The defendant denied, but was convicted of, one count of sexual touching of a child under the age of 13 in September last year, after a two-day trial at Stratford Youth Court.

The defendant told the court that he kissed the boy “on the forehead” only once, and “just as a younger brother” because the boy reminded him of his sibling who remains with the rest of his family in Afghanistan.

His age has been an “issue” in the case, but he was deemed a youth and granted anonymity.

The court heard district judge Susan Holdham made a “finding” in November last year that the defendant was 17 based on an age assessment by Waltham Forest local authority, but the defendant claimed while giving evidence that he is 15 years and eight months old based on what his mother told him when he fled his home country.

The judge adjourned the hearing to May 19 at the same court for a decision on reopening the age assessment and possibly for sentencing.

Of the incident, the judge said that there are two “very different” versions of events – one from the defendant and one from the boy.

“There is really no answer to the question why would (the boy) come crying and screaming from his room saying that he was ‘dirty dirty dirty’,” she said.

“I do not accept (the defendant’s) version of events, I accept (the boy’s) version of events as accurate of what happened that day.”

She added: “I am satisfied so that I am sure that the defendant is guilty of the offence charged.”

Both he and the victim, who also cannot be named, had been residents of a hotel housing asylum seekers in Waltham Forest, east London, at the time of the assault.

The younger boy, who is now 13, told the court via a video-link on Tuesday that he would feel “disgusting” if he saw the defendant again.

Detailing the incident, he said the defendant started to call him “brother”, and kissed him “many times” before he eventually managed to escape and find his mother.

Prosecutor Amanda Hamilton called the boy’s reaction to his mother a “genuine and immediate response” from a child who “experienced an unpleasant event, not a friendly brotherly exchange”.

In her closing speech, she told the court: “The Crown’s case is that the court can be sure…that (the defendant) assaulted a boy under 13 and that assault was sexual.”

Giving evidence about the incident, the defendant said he asked the boy to come to his room and put on a film – but denied forcing him or grabbing him.

The teenager told the court the two of them sat on the bed.

Asked if he “liked” the boy, he said: “No. I loved him as my younger brother.”

He went on to say that he touched the boy “once” by putting his hand on his head and kissed the boy “on the forehead” only “once”.

Asked why he kissed the boy, he replied: “Just as a younger brother.”

He denied having sexual feelings for the boy or feeling sexually aroused by him.

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