UK court sentences Nigerian man to prison after masturbating in front of woman on train

A 36-year-old registered sex offender, Babatunde Odutola, has been sentenced to 44 weeks in prison in the United Kingdom after exposing himself and masturbating in front of a woman on a train travelling to Manchester.

Odutola was sentenced at Manchester Magistrates’ Court on Monday, September 14, after pleading guilty to outraging public decency and breaching a suspended sentence order.

According to the British Transport Police, the incident happened at about 7pm on Friday, September 11, while Odutola was travelling through Cheshire towards Manchester Piccadilly railway station.

Police said Odutola approached the woman and looked her up and down in an intimidating manner after she declined to engage with him.

He later exposed himself while sitting in a wheelchair and masturbated while staring at the woman and telling her to “come over”.

The woman was eventually helped out of the carriage by another passenger who had become distressed by what was happening.

CCTV footage from the train later showed that Odutola continued masturbating as other passengers walked through the carriage.

Officers arrested him after the train arrived at Manchester Piccadilly.

During a police interview, Odutola denied the allegations. However, investigators presented CCTV footage and witness accounts as part of the evidence gathered during the investigation.

British Transport Police Detective Constable Leonidas Christoforou said the incident would have been frightening for the woman, who was travelling alone.

“Odutola is clearly an incredibly dangerous individual and his disturbing behaviour must have been terrifying for the victim, who he singled out when she was travelling on her own,” he said.

Christoforou said Odutola continued to deny the allegations during his interview but later pleaded guilty after being confronted with the evidence.

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

Police said the case was particularly concerning because Odutola was already a registered sex offender.

The force added that the behaviour was not an isolated incident involving him.

“This was not a one-off from Odutola, who was already a registered sex offender, and this type of alarming, predatory behaviour simply will not be tolerated on our railways,” Christoforou said.

The CCTV footage and accounts from witnesses formed key parts of the evidence used in the case after Odutola initially denied the allegations.

He was subsequently convicted of outraging public decency and breaching a suspended sentence order and handed a 44-week prison sentence.

The British Transport Police said the case highlights the importance of CCTV and witness evidence in investigating incidents on the railway network, particularly where passengers are subjected to threatening or distressing behaviour.