Nigerian healthcare worker jailed in UK for kissing vulnerable patient

 By : ‘Sola Richards and agency reports

MaTaZ ArIsInG
Dallas, Texas

A Nigerian health assistant at York Hospital, Adewale Kudabo, has been sentenced to 12 months in prison for sexually assaulting a female patient under his care.

Kudabo, 47, was convicted on two counts of sexual assault at York Crown Court on Tuesday, after pleading guilty to the offences.

The court heard that the victim, who was almost entirely immobile due to a serious medical condition, was assaulted twice while in her hospital bed.

Prosecutor Henry Fernandez told the court that the first incident occurred after Kudabo gave the patient a bed bath and leaned over to kiss her on the lips. Despite her attempts to turn away, she was unable to resist due to her condition.

A few days later, Kudabo returned to offer another bed bath, which the woman declined. He then kissed her again while she lay helpless, Fernandez said.

“She was in a lot of pain and almost completely dependent on others for her care,” he added.

The incidents took place nine months after Kudabo arrived in the UK from Nigeria. At the time, he was employed as a healthcare assistant at York Hospital and living in the South Bank area of the city.

When questioned by police, Kudabo claimed he kissed the woman on the forehead, not the lips, and said his actions were intended as a gesture of sympathy. He told officers it was “in keeping with his job.”

In a victim impact statement read in court, the woman described ongoing trauma since the incidents. She said she had experienced “helplessness, fear and loss of trust,” along with depression, anxiety, and recurring flashbacks.

Kudabo’s defence counsel, Jerry Sodipe, said the defendant accepted that his behaviour was “inappropriate” but highlighted his previously unblemished record.

Sentencing him, Judge Alex Menary said, “You abused the trust placed in you as a carer. She was particularly vulnerable—immobile and dependent on you for her care. I am satisfied the kiss was on the lips, not the forehead. What you did has had a profound impact on the victim’s life.”

The judge added that the nature of the offence required an immediate custodial sentence “to mark the seriousness of what you did to someone in your care.”

Kudabo will serve half of his 12-month sentence in custody and the remainder on licence. He has also been placed on the sex offenders register for 10 years.

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