Man admits sexually assaulting a woman in the queue to see the Queen lying in state

BRITAIN-ROYALS-QUEEN-DEATH
A man has admitted sexually assaulting a random woman as she queued to see the Queen lying in state at Parliament. (file picture)
AFP via Getty Images
WEST END FINAL

Get our award-winning daily news email featuring exclusive stories, opinion and expert analysis

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

A man has admitted sexually assaulting a random woman as she queued to see the Queen lying in state at Parliament.

Adeshina Adio, 20, exposed himself and pushed into the woman from behind as she waited in line at Victoria Tower Gardens in the wake of the Monarch’s death.

When police came to try and arrest him, Adio threw himself into the River Thames in a bid to evade capture.

Adio, who has a history of sexual offending, was taken into custody after the incident and at Southwark crown court on Friday he admitted sexual assault and the breach of a sexual harm prevention order.

Judge Jeffrey Pegden KC adjourned the case until a sentencing hearing on November 25.

Adio denied a second charge of sexual assault against an unknown woman, and prosecutor Felicia Davy said the guilty pleas he had entered have been accepted.

At an earlier hearing, prosecutor Alex Adowale said Adio’Adio's recent behaviour is “very concerning”.

“Over the past two years, the defendant has committed a number of offences,” he said.

“The defendant poses a real threat to members of the public, namely women

Describing the attack, he said: “The defendant was part of the queue to see the resting in state of Queen Elizabeth II.”

Adio’s victim was among the thousands of people who have been lining the banks of the River Thames to view the Queen’s coffin.

The woman noticed Adio because she had not previously seen him, despite having waited in the queue with the same people for hours.

He moved closer to her, then she noticed something touching her back. When she turned around, she could see Adio had exposed himself.

Adio, from Walworth, bit on his jumper during some of the hearing.

The court was told he has “complex mental health issues” and is on the autistic spectrum.

A psychological assessment is due to be conducted before sentencing, and Adio has been remanded into custody.

He was in breach of a suspended prison sentence when he committed the sexual assault, and had breached an order from Inner London crown court which was imposed to stop him from exposing himself in public.

District Crown prosecutor Anita Arora said: “Adio targeted a young woman in the queue who was waiting patiently with other family members to see the lying in state of Her Majesty, the late Queen Elizabeth.

“He subjected the victim to a very public sexual assault and exposed himself to her.

“The victim was so concerned about his behaviour that she and her sister tried to form a barrier to prevent him reaching others in the queue.

“They alerted the security staff who called the police.

“This incident was hugely distressing for the victim and her family who were with her at the time, and she behaved with composure and courage.

“What Adio did was disgusting, especially given the sombre nature of the event and the dignity of the vast majority of people attending the lying-in-state during the period of national mourning.

“On arrest the defendant had initially denied any sexual assault, but the evidence was overwhelming.

“I hope that this prosecution encourages others who have been affected by this type of assault to come forward.”

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in