A resident of the Bell Hotel in Epping in Essex who had recently arrived in the UK attempted to kiss a 14-year-old girl who had offered him some pizza, a court heard. Stuart Cowen, prosecuting at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, said Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu made “inappropriate comments” to the girl and her female friend.

“It’s the Crown’s case he said he wanted to have a baby with each of them and attempted to kiss them,” said Mr Cowen.

“He invited them back to the Bell Hotel where he was a resident, having recently arrived in the UK.

“These advances were rejected and it was made clear to him (the girl) and her friends were 14 years of age.”

Kebatu, of the Bell Hotel in Epping in Essex, spoke through an interpreter to give his date of birth as in December 1986, making him 38 years old.

The 14-year-old girl said an asylum seeker told her he wanted a baby from her, a court heard.

The girl said she was sitting together with friends on a bench, eating pizza at the time, speaking in a police video interview played at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court.

“He’s hovering, he’s come over, he looked hungry so we was like ‘do you want a slice?’,” she said.

“He sat down eating a slice. Out of nowhere, he said, ‘I want one baby from you and one baby from your friend’.

“I put my boy mate between us.”

The girl said it “all started off when I left school” on July 7.

The 14-year-old girl also said the asylum seeker “kept wanting us to come back to the Bell Hotel with him”.

She said in her police video interview: “We was out again, we see him, he’s seen us, he started waving at us.

“We sat on the same bench like we normally do.

“He came and sat next to us.”

The girl said the migrant “tried getting me to drink his beer”.

“I said ‘no, sorry I don’t drink, I’m 14’.

“He said ‘age doesn’t matter’.”

Kebatu denies five charges against him and the trial, due to last two days, continues.