Share!
A 36-year-old Nigerian man, Babatunde Odutola, has been sentenced to 44 weeks in prison in the United Kingdom after masturbating in front of a woman on a train travelling towards Manchester.
Odutola, who has no fixed address, was sentenced at Manchester Magistrates’ Court on Monday, September 14, after pleading guilty to outraging public decency and breaching a suspended sentence order.
The incident occurred at about 7pm on Friday, September 11, while the train was travelling through Cheshire towards Manchester Piccadilly.
According to the British Transport Police, Odutola approached a woman who was travelling alone and behaved aggressively after she declined to engage with him.
He subsequently exposed himself and masturbated while seated in a wheelchair, directing the behaviour towards the woman.
A fellow passenger intervened and helped the distressed woman leave the carriage, while CCTV footage showed Odutola continuing the behaviour as other passengers passed through the carriage.
Police arrested him when the train arrived at Manchester Piccadilly station.
British Transport Police Detective Constable Leonidas Christoforou described the incident as a terrifying ordeal for the victim, saying Odutola had singled her out while she was travelling alone.
He said Odutola initially denied the allegations during a police interview and showed little remorse, but CCTV footage and witness accounts provided evidence before he eventually pleaded guilty.
Police also disclosed that the incident was not Odutola’s first offence, as he was already a registered sex offender.
The case was concluded within 72 hours of the incident, with British Transport Police highlighting the swift investigation and prosecution.
The force urged passengers who experience or witness sexual offences on the railway to report them by texting 61016.
