A man has admitted to grabbing a girl's buttocks as voices in his head told him "to attack and steal from small children and to follow people around".
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Kwabena Jesse Amoo-Appau, 31, pleaded guilty in the ACT Magistrates Court on Thursday to committing an indecent act without consent.
A facts document tendered to the court states that on November 11, 2021, Amoo-Appau followed the victim at a Canberra shopping village onto a street where he allegedly grabbed her on the buttocks.
When the victim was picked up by her mum, they drove around to find the defendant.
The mother said words to the effect of: "Excuse me, mate, did you just touch my daughter?"
"That's not okay, she's just a little girl," the mother said.
Amoo-Appau replied with "yes" to the mother's question and "yes, sorry" to her follow-up statement.
MORE COURT AND CRIME NEWS
The victim's mother reported the matter to police before the defendant's own mother reported him missing.
A short time later, Amoo-Appau appeared at a police station and said he was hearing voices in his head telling him to do things.
The police document states that these included "telling him to go to the brothel, to attack and steal from small children and to follow people around".
The defendant said he had been walking around and wanted help from the police before he was taken to Canberra Hospital.
Police then spoke with the victim and viewed CCTV footage of the incident.
Amoo-Appau remains on bail and is set to front court again in June for sentencing.
Reports, including mental health-related ones, have been ordered for sentencing purposes.
Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content:
- Bookmark canberratimes.com.au
- Download our app
- Make sure you are signed up for our breaking and regular headlines newsletters
- Follow us on Twitter
- Follow us on Instagram
