An Ethiopian asylum seeker living in an Epping Hotel has been sentenced to 12 months in jail after being found guilty of five charges, including two of sexual assault.

Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu was found guilty of sexually assaulting a woman and a 14-year-old girl just days after arriving in the UK by small boat.

The judge told the 38-year-old his behaviour "really highlights the poor regard you must have for women", adding that he was "feeling sorry for yourself, knowing you were well and truly caught".

He faced a three-day trial at Chelmsford Magistrates' Court earlier this month, where he was found guilty of two counts of sexual assault, one count of attempted sexual assault, one count of inciting a girl to engage in sexual activity, and one count of harassment without violence.

Kebatu reportedly shook his head when some pieces of evidence were read to the court, while at other times he watched vividly from inside the glass dock.

On July 8, Kebatu tried to kiss a teenage girl in Epping, Essex, and put his hand on her thigh and brushed her hair.

Separately, he was found guilty of trying to kiss an adult woman and put his hand on her leg, who distracted the man by talking to him about his CV.

The woman said she felt "shocked" and "uncomfortable" about the situation as she called the police.

Her phone call was played to the court, where she could be heard shouting: "Get away from the kids."

Kebatu has been sentenced to 12 months in jail

Prosecutor at Chelmsford Magistrates' Court, Stuart Cowen, explained that Kebatu told the author of a pre-sentence report about him and that he "felt very sad and felt a lot of remorse".

However, Mr Cowen added: "The word manipulative is used within the report.

"There's also comments made by Mr Kebatu when he stated he didn't know the UK was so strict, even though he knew the Ethiopian age of consent was 18.

"He said because of the situation, Epping is in chaos, and he had got a lot of migrants in trouble."

Multiple protests have happened outside The Bell Hotel in Epping since the assault

The 14-year-old schoolgirl says she now feels "exposed" whenever she is in her school uniform.

She told the court: "Every time I go out with my friends, I am checking over my shoulder.

"If I do go out, I go home to change what I'm wearing so it's not school uniform. My school skirt now makes me feel exposed."

The adult victim said she wants Kebatu to "feel guilty for what he put us through," adding: "How would he feel if this was his mother, his daughter, his wife?"

The court heard that Kebatu wants to be deported from the UK

Since the incident, the victim now feels "worried to leave [her] house" and thinks "about [the] incident most nights before bed".

Kebatu's firm now wishes to be deported from the UK "as soon as possible", with his defence barrister, Molly Dyas, saying he is "suffering with his mental health".

While handing his sentence, District Judge Christopher Williams said: "Your offending as an asylum seeker housed at The Bell Hotel caused such a response from the public, particularly in Epping, but also across the United Kingdom.

"It resulted in mass demonstrations and the fear that children in the United Kingdom are not safe."