Man behind bars after pleading guilty to sexual activity with teenage girl in Crawley

He will be a registered sex offender indefinitely.

Author: Lettie BuxtonPublished 5th Oct 2020

A man has been jailed for more than five-and-a-half years after pleading guilty to a count of sexual activity with a teenage girl in Crawley.

Morakile Kosi, aged 33, unemployed, and of Barn Field Terrace, Bexhill, appeared at Lewes Crown Court last Monday (28 September).

Morakile Kosi

He was sentenced to 67 months imprisonment and will be a registered sex offender indefinitely.

He was also given a Sexual Harm Prevention Order severely restricting his access to girls aged under 16 until further court order.

But, Kosi pleaded not guilty to raping the 14 year-old girl and that charge was ordered to lay on the court file.

Detective Constable Helen Rainbow of the West Sussex Safeguarding Investigations Unit said:

"Kosi came to know the vulnerable young girl through mutual acquaintances and deliberately arranged a situation in which she was at his mercy, purely for his own gratification.

"The victim showed real strength and maturity in bringing this to the attention of the police, and I hope that this encourages others who have found themselves in a similar situation to come forward.

"Sussex Police will always take these matters seriously.

"Grooming young people is particularly heinous because it preys on their vulnerabilities – but grooming is not consent."

There is support and advice for victims of sexual offences on the Sussex Police website.

Anyone with information about sexual offending can also contact the police online or by calling 101.