Indian jailed for sexually assault in UK

LONDON: An Indian sailor has been sentenced to 15 months imprisonment by a British court for sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl on his cruise ship when it was sailing through the Mediterranean.

30-year-old Cajetan Fernandes from Mumbai reportedly befriended the girl during a trip on the ship named Aurora and led her around the ship to a toilet cubicle, locked the door and sexually assaulted her, according to a report in the 'Daily Echo,'.

Fernandes persuaded the girl to follow him while she was waiting for a friend, prosecuting lawyer James Kellam said.

The girl eventually confided in a friend she met on the cruise ship who persuaded her to talk to a youth worker, the prosecuting lawyer said. Fernandes was arrested when the liner docked in Southampton.

Fernandes sobbed and clutched a crucifix close to his chest when the Southampton Crown court sentenced him to 15 months. He declined to make a recommendation for deportation to India.

Megan Toplis, lawyer for Fernandes, said he was extremely sorry for what he had done and pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity.

She said he had received no visitors while in custody and had been too ashamed to let his family know what he had done.

Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com