UK-based Nigerian jailed 44 weeks for masturbating before woman

A 36-year-old Nigerian, Babatunde Odutola, has been jailed for 44 weeks in the United Kingdom after pleading guilty to outraging public decency and breaching a suspended sentence order.

PUNCH Metro learnt from a statement by the British Transport Police on Thursday that Odutola was arrested after allegedly masturbating and behaving aggressively in front of a woman travelling alone on a train bound for Manchester Piccadilly railway station.

According to the BTP, officers were called to Manchester Piccadilly last Friday following reports of the incident and arrested Odutola, who was of no fixed address, at the station.

The police said Odutola appeared before Manchester Magistrates’ Court on September 14, where he pleaded guilty to one count of outraging public decency and breaching a suspended sentence order and was sentenced to 44 weeks in prison.

Detective Constable Leonidas Christoforou, who described Odutola as “an incredibly dangerous individual”, said the suspect’s behaviour must have been terrifying for the victim, whom he allegedly singled out while she was travelling alone.

“He’s shown little remorse for his actions and denied the allegations against him during his police interview,” Christoforou said.

The detective said CCTV footage and witness accounts provided evidence against Odutola before he eventually pleaded guilty in court.

“A stack of incriminating evidence, including damning CCTV and several witness accounts, left him with little choice but to plead guilty when he appeared in court,” he added.

The BTP said the case was concluded within 72 hours of its investigation, attributing the outcome to its rapid response to the report.

PUNCH Metro reported in January that another Nigerian, Daniel Odubanjo, was sentenced to six years in prison in the UK for sexually assaulting a woman during a train journey.

Odubanjo was sentenced by Chelmsford Crown Court on January 12 for offences including false imprisonment and sexual assault after a woman reported that he assaulted her while she was using a train toilet.