A 16-year-old teenager was grabbed on the seafront by Eastbourne Sex Offender Darren Hellowell; he has been cautioned he may be imprisoned.
After asking the young woman for a cigarette lighter, Darren Hellowell, 29, fondled her on the beach near Eastbourne Pier.
Lewes Crown Court listened to the stranger touch the girl and then make inappropriate remarks to her.
Friends of the girl ordered the pervert to leave, but he continued the inebriated assault.
Darren Hellowell, who claimed to police in an interview he had poor recall of the attack, was apprehended by police nearby.
The girl told police in a Victim Impact Statement: “I felt on edge as he first approached me since I didn’t know him.”
“I felt terrified and then surprised and offended when he went to touch my legs.”
Last year, prosecutor Simon Allen informed the court the attack occurred on September 1 at approximately 11.30 pm.
He said: “A 16-year-old girl was having an evening out in Eastbourne with some companions. First, they were at Western Lawns, around 8.30 p.m.
“They headed towards the Pier later on, roughly at 11.30 pm, and settled on the sand. Originally asking, “Have you got a lighter?” the defendant approaches. The victim claimed she had not then the defendant slipped his hands up after placing his right hand on her left leg just above her knee.
“She said, ‘Get off me,’ while seated with her knees up and moved her legs”. She felt terrified and was shocked. Her companions advised him to clear out after seeing what transpired.
Then Darren Hellowell leaned forward and placed his hand in the same spot, Mr Allen recalled.
She immediately pulled him away, but he showed her sexual cues.
Mr Allen continued: “She answered, “Don’t even look at me.”
“Police must have been close since his arrest occurred a few minutes later.”
Darren Hellowell was put on the Sex Offenders Register for five years in 2005 after allegedly grasping the private areas of a Kent woman.
But three days after his release from detention, he neglected to tell authorities where he had disappeared to.
Without a stable residence, Darren Hellowell confessed to sexual assault and broke the Sex Offenders Register rules.
Defending, Daniel Frier provided no mitigating evidence as Recorder Richard Benson, QC, postponed sentencing until February 15 to evaluate Darren Hellowell’s level of risk.
“I want to make it absolutely clear that all sentencing options are available,” he said.
“Because this is your second sexual offence the law compels the court to evaluate whether you constitute a considerable danger of serious harm to the public.”
Darren Hellowell was released from detention while money was being sought for a spot at Avenida Lodge on Upper Avenue for those struggling with alcohol issues.
Record Benson said, “Even if there is funding available, it doesn’t necessarily mean he would not receive some form of custodial sentence.”
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