Man convicted of a sexual offence against a child in Watford
It happened in May
A man has been convicted, after members of the public intervened when they witnessed a teenage girl being sexually harassed in Watford.
Kamikar Brar, aged 66, of Sutherland Road, London, appeared at St Albans Magistrates’ Court and pleaded guilty to one count of engaging in sexual communication with a child.
The court heard how on Saturday 3 May this year, Brar approached two teenage girls on a stairwell in the Harlequin shopping centre and asked where the bathroom was.
Brar, who was intoxicated, then began asking inappropriate questions and making sexual comments towards one of the girls.
A member of the public walking past noticed the teenagers looked uncomfortable and asked if Brar was bothering them. They said yes, so the member of the public told Brar to leave which he did initially, before returning.
A second member of the public then noticed Brar continuing his harassment of the victim and her friend. She, the victim and her friend went to find one of the shopping centre’s security officers, but Brar followed them. Police were called and officers arrived a short time later before placing Brar under arrest.
After his appearance at court on 3 October, Brar was released on bail with strict conditions not to enter Watford for any reason. His sentencing has been scheduled for 13 November.
Detective Sergeant Ayodeji Afolabi, from the constabulary’s Case Investigation Team, said: “This was a frightening incident for the young victim and her friend, and I want to commend their courage throughout the investigation. We will always do everything in our power to support victims of sexual offences in Hertfordshire, and bring the perpetrators to justice. Brar targeted the victim while she was out shopping with her friend, but thanks to the quick-thinking of members of the public and the Harlequin’s security team, we were able to quickly attend and arrest him at the scene. Now he has admitted his offending, we await the sentencing result next month.”
Beacon is Hertfordshire’s Victim Care Centre and is staffed by professionals from both Hertfordshire Constabulary and Catch 22, an independent organisation commissioned to support victims of crime of crime in the county.
For more information on how to contact Beacon in the strictest confidence, visit here.