A man accused of sexually assaulted a 22-year-old woman at a party has been jailed for three years and ten months on Monday morning.

The jury at Kingston Crown Court found Benjamin Kwahu Boateng, 27, of Crawford Street, London, guilty of one count of sexual assault by penetration at an earlier hearing.

During the trial, the court heard that on Saturday 18 September 2010, the 22-year-old victim and her friend had spent the evening socialising in central London.

In the early hours, they met up with a group of their friends who were in a nightclub in Mayfair.

Benjamin Boateng was also in the club and was speaking to one of the victim’s friends. It appeared they shared mutual acquaintances.

Later the victim and her group of friends traveled by car to a flat in Altura Towers, Battersea, for a private party which Boateng later also attended.

At some point the victim fell asleep on a large sofa. She woke up a short time later to discover she was being sexually assaulted by Boateng, who was lying next to her.

The victim left the property and later reported her ordeal to the police who identified Boateng as the suspect and arrested him.

Detective Inspector Sian Thomas, Sapphire, said: “I welcome today’s sentence which sends a strong message that sexual offences will not be tolerated. Boateng took advantage of a vulnerable female who was asleep at the time he assaulted her. I would like to pay tribute to the victim who was courageous in coming forward and reporting this incident to the police and giving evidence against him in court.”

(DW)