A migrant convicted of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old schoolgirl was last seen in north-east London last night, police have said.
Hadush Kebatu, 41, who was still wearing his prison-issue tracksuit top and bottoms, was spotted shortly before 8pm in the Dalston area of Hackney.
The sex offender was accidentally freed from HMP Chelmsford by bungling staff on Friday morning after serving just one month of his year-long sentence.
Kebatu should have been transferred to a deportation centre, but clueless prison officers repeatedly told him to leave and get on a train to London, it emerged today.
On Saturday night, the Metropolitan Police released new CCTV images of the Ethiopian national.
A spokesman for the force said: ‘He was still wearing his prison-issue grey tracksuit top and bottoms, but is now carrying his belongings in a distinctive white bag with pictures of avocados on it.’
It is understood that Kebatu, an Ethiopian national who arrived in the UK on a small boat, left prison with an amount of personal money.
Government officials have denied he was given a discharge grant, which prisoners leaving a custodial sentence are entitled to in order to cover subsistence costs.
A CCTV image issued by the Metropolitan Police shows Hadush Kebatu in Dalston, London last night
He is also seen here in Chelmsford, carrying a different bag
Inmates leaving prison for deportation do not qualify for the handout – but it was previously reported that Kebatu did in fact receive the £76.
A delivery driver today described seeing Kebatu return to HMP Chelmsford in a ‘very confused’ state, only to be turned away by prison staff and directed to the railway station.
The driver, named only as Sim, told Sky News that he saw Kebatu come out of the prison saying: ‘Where am I going? What am I doing?’
He said that Kebatu knew that he should be deported but the prison staff were ‘basically sending him away’ and saying to him ‘Go, you’ve been released, you go’.
The driver said: ‘He kept scratching his head and saying, ‘where do I go, where do I go?’
‘The fourth or fifth time (he went into the reception) he was starting to get upset, he was getting stressed.
‘I’m not sticking up for the guy, but in my eyes, he was trying to do the right thing.
‘He knew he was getting deported, but he didn’t know where he was going or how he should get there.’
A Ministry of Justice spokeswoman confirmed that the account was accurate.
Commander James Conway from the Met Police this afternoon said that the search for Kebatu was ongoing and that he had ‘made a number of train journeys across London’.
Police believe Kebatu has access to funds and has sought assistance from members of the public, he added.
Conway then made a direct appeal to Kebatu: ‘We want to locate you in a safe and controlled way. You had already indicated a desire to return to Ethiopia when speaking to immigration staff.
‘The best outcome for you is to make contact directly with us by either calling 999 or reporting yourself to a police station.’
Hadush Kebatu, 41, was accidentally freed from HMP Chelmsford on Friday morning by bungling staff after serving just a month of his 12-month sentence for preying on the schoolgirl
Video footage appeared to capture Kebatu (believed to be pictured in this footage) in Chelmsford town centre asking for directions from locals
Kebatu was accidentally released from HMP Chelmsford (Pictured on Saturday)
Police now say they believe Kebatu has access to cash and has made a number of train journeys across London
Giving a statement at Scotland Yard on Saturday, Commander James Conway said: ‘Officers from the Met’s Specialist crime command are pursuing all possible lines of enquiry to find [Mr Kebatu] and return him to custody.
‘Mr Kebatu made his way to Chelmsford train station following his release from prison and boarded a train which departed at 12.42pm, arriving in Stratford station at 12 minutes past 1 in the afternoon yesterday.
‘Mr Kebatu was released wearing a prison-issued grey tracksuit and holding a clear plastic bag holding his possessions.
‘He has since made a number of train journeys across the London area. We believe he has access to funds, and critically, in both Chelmsford and London, we believe he has sought assistance from members of the public and has spoken to station staff.
‘If you’ve had any direct contact with him, or are currently providing him with assistance, we are very keen to hear from you. You might have info to help us establish his whereabouts.
‘Later today we will also be releasing new footage of Mr Kebatu in London. If you’ve seen the person in this footage or know of his whereabouts in the past 24 hours please call 101 and tell us.’
He added that any member of the public who believes they have seen Mr Kebatu should phone 999.
This latest revelation comes as the Metropolitan Police said the force had taken over the investigation by Saturday afternoon and revealed where Kebatu was last seen.
The convicted asylum seeker was spotted boarding a London-bound train at Chelmsford station at 12.41pm yesterday afternoon.
He left the train at Stratford at around 1.12pm, with police saying there is ‘a high degree of confidence’ Kebatu is still in the area.
Stratford, east London, is a major hub in the city with significant transport links. It is usually crowded with shoppers from Westfield Stratford City shopping centre at the weekend.
The father of the girl who was assaulted by Kebatu turned up at Chelmsford jail visibly upset yesterday and begging for answers.
He told Sky News he felt ‘let down’ by the system and ‘frustrated’ at the idea that Kebatu had been able to escape prison after attacking his daughter this summer.
‘The justice system has let us down’, he said.
It has also now emerged that it took more than an hour for prison staff to realise they had released Kebatu by mistake – giving him a big head start over the authorities.
Essex Police said they were only informed about Kebatu’s wrongful release by the prison service at 12.57pm, while it remains unconfirmed when exactly the prisoner was freed.
District Judge Christopher Williams said that Kebatu posed a ‘significant risk of reoffending’ when he was given a 12 month sentence in September.
The UK Borders Act 2007 states that a deportation order must be made when a foreign national has been convicted of an offence and received a custodial sentence of at least 12 months.
It has left Labour facing fresh questions about its handling of the migrant crisis amid accusations of ‘breathtaking incompetence’.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said it showed ‘a level of incompetence that beggars belief’.
Delivery driver Sim (pictured) told Sky News that the sex offender asylum seeker who was mistakenly freed from prison yesterday was given directions to the train station by prison staff
Kebatu (pictured in a court sketch before his conviction) was sentenced to 12 months in prison
Police said that the Ethiopian – whose offences led to protests outside the Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex this summer – was seen boarding a London-bound train at Chelmsford station at 12.41pm.
Video footage captured him in Chelmsford town centre at 12.07pm, asking for directions from locals while still wearing his prison-issue grey tracksuit and clutching a plastic bag containing his possessions.
Tory justice spokesman Robert Jenrick said the case was ‘a parable for how the British state consistently fails the British people’.
He added: ‘It’s outrageous the victims have been failed in this way. The whole saga is a national embarrassment. He should have been on a flight out of the UK long ago.’
A senior justice source admitted: ‘This is the mother of all f***-ups.’
Labour’s new deputy leader Lucy Powell said the blunder which saw Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu released was a ‘big mistake’.
She said: ‘This is an operational matter and I’m sure the Ministry of Justice will be making their comments on that soon.
‘But obviously it’s a big mistake and we need to find him quickly and make sure that he’s deported, and that’s what we’ll be determined to do.’
He launched an immediate inquiry, and a member of prison staff was removed from duties.
Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy was said to be furious about the blunder, which was put down to ‘human error’ at HMP Chelmsford, where Kebatu had been in custody awaiting ‘imminent’ deportation.
‘Remorseless’ Kebatu was jailed for a year last month after harassing his 14-year-old victim, saying he wanted to marry her and ‘have babies’, then touching her before trying to kiss a woman who came to the terrified girl’s rescue.
His arrest led to protesters and counter-protesters taking to the streets in Epping and eventually outside hotels housing asylum seekers across the country.
Fury erupted at the mistake on Friday night, with the Government accused of failing to protect victims, children and the wider public from dangerous offenders such as Kebatu.
It comes amid a backlash against efforts to tackle illegal migration after a migrant who was deported under the ‘one in, one out’ scheme with France reappeared on UK shores this week having simply crossed the Channel again in a small boat.
Sir Keir Starmer said: ‘The mistaken release at HMP Chelmsford is totally unacceptable. I am appalled that it has happened and it’s being investigated. The police are working urgently to track him down, and my Government is supporting them.
‘This man must be caught and deported for his crimes.’
People (pictured) held Union flags and a St George’s Cross which read ‘Save our Kids’ outside the hotel on Friday
But Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said: ‘The entire system is collapsing under Labour.
‘Conservatives voted against Labour’s prisoner-release program because it was putting predators back on our streets. But this man has only just been convicted.’
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp criticised Mr Lammy and Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, adding: ‘It is disgraceful that a dangerous convicted paedophile who attacked a 14-year-old girl has been allowed to vanish.
‘This despicable man is an illegal immigrant who should have been deported immediately when he arrived. This is breathtaking incompetence by David Lammy and Shabana Mahmood.
‘They have put our children at further risk by letting this dangerous illegal immigrant out on to our streets. They are responsible for anything he may do. Illegal immigrants ought to be deported within a week, but the Government is too weak to do that.’
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said: ‘Britain is broken.’
Mr Lammy said: ‘We are urgently working with the police to track him down and I’ve ordered an urgent investigation. Kebatu must be deported for his crimes, not on our streets.’
During his trial this summer, Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court heard that Kebatu acted ‘ignorantly and repulsively’ when he launched his double attack just eight days after arriving in the country on a small boat.
Kebatu became aroused as he put his hand on the girl’s thighs and stroked her hair despite knowing ‘full well she was only 14’, the court heard.
He said he wanted to marry her and have a baby with her, and invited her back to The Bell, where he was staying.
The migrant, who was a sports teacher in his home country, then tried to kiss a woman who attempted to intervene, before putting his hand on her leg and telling her she was pretty.
After assaulting the schoolgirl, Kebatu was chased back to the hotel by his adult victim, who called police.
Kebatu denied three counts of sexual assault, one of attempted sexual assault, a charge of harassment and another of attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity, but was convicted on all charges.
District Judge Christopher Williams said his ‘disgusting and sickening’ behaviour highlighted his ‘poor regard… for women’. Following his conviction, defence barrister Molly Dyas told the court: ‘His wish is to be deported as soon as possible.’
Kebatu was given a five-year sexual harm prevention order, and put on the sex offenders’ register for ten years.
Essex Police said: ‘We were informed by the prison service at 12.57pm of an error this morning surrounding the release of an individual.
‘We have launched a search operation to locate them.’
The force added: ‘It is not lost on us that this situation is concerning to people, and we are committed to locating and arresting him as quickly as possible.’
The Prison Service said: ‘We are urgently working with police to return an offender to custody following a release in error. Public protection is our top priority and we have launched an investigation into this incident.’
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Justice Secretary David Lammy should take responsibility for the blunder that led to Kebatu being accidentally released, Epping Forest’s Tory MP said.
Neil Hudson told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: ‘This sounds like an operational error, but the buck has to stop somewhere, and it has to stop at the top, at the Justice Secretary, the Home Secretary and the Prime Minister.
‘They have said that they are livid and appalled. Well, quite right, they should be livid and appalled. But that’s not good enough, and the Labour Government needs to get a grip of this issue.
‘They need to apprehend this man, but they’ve got to sort this issue out, and that’s what my constituents, who are deeply distressed and upset, are saying.’
In the 12 months leading up to March this year, 262 prisoners were released in error in England and Wales, according to the prison service’s annual digest.
‘This is a 128% increase from 115 the previous year, and the highest in the time series,’ the report said.
‘Of the 262 releases in error, 233 of these releases in error occurred from prison establishments, while 29 were released in error at the courts.’
Marie Goldman, the Lib Dem MP for Chelmsford, told BBC Breakfast: ‘We need to get to grips with what happened and why it happened.
‘Chelmsford is a remand prison, which means it is used to having prisoners coming and going quite frequently.
‘They are held in HMP Chelmsford for not a very long time, usually when they are waiting for trial or maybe for a couple of weeks after they have had trial and are waiting to be transferred to another prison.
‘If this sort of thing can happen at Chelmsford then it is very likely that it can happen elsewhere.’
Ms Goldman also said she had tried to contact the prisoner governor for an explanation and was told ‘the governor was not speaking to stakeholders individually’ – a response she called ‘unacceptable’.
Police are advising anyone who sees Kebatu or knows where he is to call 999 immediately.
