A rape charge against a man staying in an asylum hotel was kept quiet over fears that it could stoke community tensions. The case is one of three rape cases where it is alleged that the fact that suspects were being housed in asylum accommodation was not made public.
Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick claimed that trust in government institutions was falling. He said: “The illegal small-boat crossings are a national security emergency. We’ve seen terrorism, murders and rapes from those who’ve come here illegally. It’s outrageous.
“Women in towns with asylum hotels shouldn’t have to live in fear.
“The authorities must trust the public with the truth and act to protect them.”
The three cases are understood to have occurred in Manchester, Portsmouth and London, with all three suspects having being housed in Home Office-funded accommodation at the time of the offences, according to the Sun.
In Portsmouth, the asylum hotel resident was charged with rape and voyeurism after the alleged attack on a woman on June 11.
Police confirmed to The Sun he had been at the Royal Beach Hotel in Southsea, used to house asylum seekers.
The man appeared at Portsmouth magistrates’ court on June 16. He was remanded in custody and is no longer at the hotel.
It is alleged that councillors were told to keep quiet about the status of the alleged rapist, with one council officer saying that they feared raising “community tension” if the information became public.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said last night: “The council officials who hid the truth about these serious allegations should immediately face the sack.
“Decent people are getting angrier every day.”
The Sun reports that Portsmouth City Council “effectively” admitted it chose not to go public, fearing the type of backlash seen in Northern Ireland earlier this month after the alleged rape of a girl by two teenage boys.
A spokesman said: “We knew the Home Office accommodation link would become public knowledge through the court proceedings and, based on events elsewhere in the country, were conscious there may be community tensions related to it.”
Two other incidents in London and Manchester also saw the alleged rapists’ background not revealed to the public.
In one case, a man staying in a hotel in Kensington was charged over a serious sex attack, including rape and attempted rape.
In Manchester a Jordanian man with an ongoing asylum claim was charged with rape.
