The boat migrant who was arrested for touching girls just eight days after landing in the country, who caused nationwide protests, and who was ‘accidentally’ released from prison and then sought in farcical police manhunt has been deported.
The British government “pulled every lever” to ensure the deportation of Hadush Kebatu, an Ethiopian of uncertain age, back to Ethiopia, the Home Secretary said on Wednesday. Ethiopia is not a common destination for deportees for the United Kingdom given the two governments do not have return agreements, but Kebatu’s comments in court as he was convicted that he wanted to go home is likely to have eased matters.
UPDATE 1300 — Kebatu Paid to Leave
Sex offender Hadush Kebatu pocketed £500 cash from UK taxpayers on his way out as the Home Office deemed it better to pay him to go quietly, after he threatened to disrupt his own deportation. According to the Daily Telegraph, clearly wishing to avoid a repeat of Kebatu’s unplanned escape from custody last week they escorted him to Ethiopia with five security escorts.
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Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said on Wednesday morning that she was angry about the “blunder” of Kebatu being kicked out of prison. She said: “I have pulled every lever to deport Mr Kebatu and remove him off British soil. I am pleased to confirm this vile child sex offender has been deported. Our streets are safer because of it.
“If you come to this country and commit crimes, we will remove you.”
Kebatu has dominated the headlines in the United Kingdom very nearly since the moment he arrived in the country by human trafficker boat to the south coast in July of this year. Within just eight days of his arrival, Kebatu had been arrested in the town of Epping, Essex, where he’d been placed by the government in a hotel commandeered for the accommodation of illegal migrants.
When news spread in the local community that a hotel-dwelling boat migrant had been arrested for sexually assaulting a local child — a 14-year-old girl in her school uniform, who he touched and asked to “make babies” with — protests began. These anti-child-sex-assault and anti-migrant-hotel protests quickly spread across England and eventually were taking place simultaneously in dozens of towns.
Kebatu was later convicted of two counts of sexual assault, attempted sexual assault, harassment without violence, and attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity. He was sentenced to 12 months in prison, but just a month later was released by prison guards.
It was intended that Kebatu was to be picked up from the prison by border force officers, but for reasons that have yet to be explained, they never materialised and Kebatu was inadvertently able to walk free. After several apparent attempts to return to the prison, the migrant boarded a train and vanished into London. He was later recaptured after a 48-hour manhunt.
Now, just 36 days after he was sentenced to 12 months in prison, Kebatu has been given what he said he wanted, to go home.
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