Nigerian Catholic Priest Hilary Ogom Jailed In The UK For sexually Assaulting Woman (Pictured)
58-year-old Hilary Ogom Nwadei, a Catholic priest who went on the run
after sexually assaulting a woman has been jailed for eight months.
Hilary who's from the Diocese of Issele-Uku, Delta State, had pleaded
guilty to fondling with a woman's breast and exposing himself while staying
at St Mary’s Priory in Leyland.
Father Nwadei began staying at the Priory in
September 2013 while he studied a doctorate in law at the University of
Central Lancashire, and also preached to the congregation.
Reports say during that time he complained of loneliness and befriended
his victim who he regularly confided in and often hugged during these
exchanges.
It was learnt that Nwadei on December 12, 2013 had asked his victim to
help him pack for a return trip to Nigeria. She agreed and went to his
bedroom.
According to the prosecutor, David Traynor, “The defendant leaned
against the door of the room, with this, he was between her and
her way out of the room.
“He asked her for a kiss and she presented him with her cheek, but the
defendant said ‘No, a proper kiss’, then kissed her on the lips.
“The victim said she wanted to leave and tried to leave, then the defendant asked if she had any sexual feelings towards him.
When she said 'No' the defendant reached up the back of her jumper and undid her bra. Then he moved his hands round the front, underneath her jumper and
placed his hands under her bra, onto her naked breasts. He fondled her
breasts for a matter of seconds.
The woman made her excuses to leave, but he was still between her and the door, so she couldn’t leave at that point.
He then pulled his trousers, exposed himself and made a
lewd comment. The woman said she had to leave and Nwadei moved out of
the way to let her pass.
Mr Traynor also told the court Nwadei had told the woman “it was meant to be just you and me” and told her not to say anything.
The court also heard that the assault followed two incidents in previous
days, where Nwadei had told the woman he loved her, “twanged” her bra
and slipped £100 in her pocket for new underwear.
The woman told a friend and the matter was raised with the church, who launched an investigation, then told the police.
Reports say Nwadei had returned to Nigeria before moving to London,
returning briefly to Leyland to apologise for his actions. But knowing
that he was wanted for questioning, he left the UK again, following the
death of his father and did not return until he was arrested at Heathrow
Airport while on a transit flight to the USA in December 2014.
Claire Jones speaking for the defence , said: “He yearns to return to
his country and has learned a salutary lesson. He can no longer carry on
in this vein. “He has been asked to leave the church and also it has shaken his faith going through this experience.”
Jones insisted there was no evidence to suggest he tried to stop the
victim from leaving the bedroom during the time of the assault.
The judge, Michael Byrne read out excerpts from the victim’s impact
statement, where she told of feeling intimidated and scared to bump into
Nwadei.
Sentencing, he said: “I make it unequivocally plain that all incidents of sexual assault always regarded as serious.”
He said although the crime was at the lower end of the scale, it has two
aggravating features – it was a breach of trust for a minister of
religion, and that the invitation to his bedroom was for the purpose of a
sexual encounter.
Reflecting his guilty plea, Judge Byrne jailed him for eight months with a £100 statutory charge.
Nwadei will be put on the sex offenders’ register for 10 years, and will
be deported from the UK immediately after his jail term expires.
DS Carl Matthews said, “This was a despicable crime committed by Nwadei
who then tried to flee from facing the consequences of his actions. I
hope that today’s sentence brings some closure to his victim who has
been supported by specially trained officers throughout the process.”
A spokesman for the Catholic Archdiocese of Liverpool said:“Father Ogom
came to England to undertake further studies in Law at the University of
Central Lancashire having received an appropriate Testimonial of
Suitability for Ordained Ministry from the Bishop of Issele-Uku.
“During his stay in this country he resided in the Archdiocese of Liverpool at St Mary’s, Leyland.
“The case came to light when the victim reported the matter to the
Safeguarding Department of the Archdiocese. It was immediately referred
to Lancashire Police.”
