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Sex offender Hadush Kebatu has arrived in Ethiopia after being deported from the UK with no right to return, the Home Office has confirmed.
The Ethiopian national was wrongly freed from HMP Chelmsford on Friday morning instead of being sent to an immigration detention centre.
Kebatu had been living at the Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex, when he sexually assaulted a 14-year-old girl and a woman.
In a national manhunt, the migrant travelled to London after his accidental release and was arrested on Sunday morning.
Officers found Kebatu sitting on a bench in Finsbury Park before he was taken into custody.
The Home Office said Kebatu was removed on a flight to Ethiopia on Tuesday night and arrived on Wednesday morning.
(Picture: via REUTERS)
Last month, he was found guilty of sexual assault, just over a week after arriving in the UK on a small boat.
He was expected to be deported, but instead of being handed over to immigration officials, he was released from HMP Chelmsford on Friday.
Speaking to Sky News, a delivery driver who spoke to Kebatu at HMP Chelmsford described him as being ‘confused’ as he was being guided to the railway station by prison staff.
The migrant is said to have returned to the prison reception four or five times before leaving the area on a train heading to London.
The accidental release sparked widespread alarm and questions over how a man whose crimes sparked protests in Epping over the use of asylum hotels was able to be freed.
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As of yesterday, new checks were introduced in prisons, including five pages of instructions and demands that more senior prison staff sign off a release.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said: ‘Last week’s blunder should never have happened – and I share the public’s anger that it did. I would like to thank the police for rapidly bringing Mr Kebatu into custody and the public for their vigilance.
‘I have pulled every lever to deport Mr Kebatu and remove him off British soil. I am pleased to confirm this vile child sex offender has been deported. Our streets are safer because of it.
‘If you come to this country and commit crimes, we will remove you.’
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