Man, 19, pleads guilty to sexual assault

A 19-year-old man has been sentenced after he pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a teenage girl in Northampton town centre.

On July 29, 2021, Sami Alemu, of St Michael’s Road, Northampton, was with a friend when they approached two girls unknown to them at the end of Emporium Way and started chatting to them.

During the conversation, Alemu sexually assaulted one of the girls – touching her inappropriately, wrapping his arms around her, kissing her neck, and biting her on the chest, causing bruising.

Throughout the assault, the girl never provided her consent, instead repeatedly telling him to stop – a request he ignored.

The girls managed to get away and called police resulting in Alemu being arrested and subsequently charged with sexual assault.

At Northampton Crown Court on August 22 this year, Alemu pleaded guilty to the offence, returning to the same court on October 11 where he was sentenced to six months in prison – suspended for 18 months, an 18-month curfew requirement and 120 hours of unpaid work. He was also placed on the Sex Offenders’ Register for seven years.

Lead Investigator – Detective Constable Jay White said: “Tackling violence against women and girls is a priority for Northamptonshire Police and this type of incident is exactly what we want to make crystal clear we have zero tolerance for.

“Every woman and girl should feel safe when they are out in public and people like Sami Alemu are exactly the reason why many of them don’t. His behaviour that day was disgraceful and so I am pleased that we have achieved a conviction here and hope this sends a message to others like him.

“Finally, I want to commend the young woman in this case for her bravery. She has supported our investigation from start to finish and I hope that the conclusion of this process brings her some small comfort and the ability to move forward with her bright future.”