AN ASYLUM seeker accused of sexual assault in a case that triggered protests outside hotels housing migrants in Britain tried to kiss a 14-year-old girl, his trial heard on Tuesday (26).
Hadush Kebatu, thought to be 38, also told the teenager he wanted to have a baby with her after she offered him pizza because he looked hungry, prosecutors alleged.
Kebatu, who denies the claims, was staying at the Bell Hotel in Epping -- just northeast of London -- during the time of the allegations in early July.
The alleged incident sparked several anti-immigration protests and counter-demonstrations outside the hotel, some of which turned violent.
Prosecutor Stuart Cowen told Chelmsford Magistrates' Court in Essex that Kebatu had recently arrived in the UK and "invited" the girl and her friend "to come back to the Bell Hotel".
"These advances were rejected and it was made clear to him (the girl) and her friends were 14 years of age," he added.
Last week, a high court judge ruled the hotel had breached planning rules and ordered all residents to be removed by September 12.
The ruling raised questions about the government's ability to provide accommodation for tens of thousands of migrants as it considers their requests for asylum.
Court listings on Tuesday showed the owners of the hotel and the Home Office will have their bid to appeal to overturn the decision heard on Thursday (28).
More than 32,000 migrants were staying in hotels at the end of June, Home Office data released last week showed.
That was marginally up on the same period last year, in part because of record numbers of irregular migrants crossing the English Channel from France on small boats.
The migrants are often fleeing conflict or hunger, with Afghanistan and Eritrea accounting for most arrivals for the year to June 2025.
The hard-right Reform UK party led by anti-immigrant firebrand Nigel Farage is tapping into anger over the crossings to lead prime minister Keir Starmer's Labour in national opinion polls.
On Tuesday, Farage suggested that Reform would seek to deport up to 600,000 asylum seekers within five years if it wins the next general election, expected in 2029.
Labour says it has returned more than 35,000 failed asylum seekers since returning to power last year and has pledged to end the use of asylum hotels by the next election.
Last week's data showed that 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June, the highest for any 12-month period since records began in 2001.
Kebatu's trial is expected to end on Wednesday (27).
(AFP)
