A man has pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a woman in the queue to attend the Queen’s lying in state.

Adeshina Adio, 20, exposed himself and pushed into the mourner as she waited in line at Victoria Tower Gardens at around 7.30pm on September 14.

He later jumped into the River Thames in an attempt to evade arrest, before coming out of the water and being detained.

Adio, from Walworth, south-east London, appeared at Southwark Crown Court on Friday wearing a grey prison-issue tracksuit.

He spoke to confirm his name and date of birth before pleading guilty to sexually assaulting a woman, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, and breaching a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO).

He denied a further count of sexual assaulting an unknown woman and prosecutor Felicia Davy said the pleas were ‘acceptable to the Crown’.

Judge Jeffrey Pegden KC remanded Adio, who was in breach of a suspended sentence, in custody ahead of a sentencing hearing on November 25.

District Crown prosecutor Anita Arora said: ‘Adio targeted a young woman in the queue who was waiting patiently with other family members to see the lying in state of Her Majesty, the late Queen Elizabeth.

‘He subjected the victim to a very public sexual assault and exposed himself to her.

‘The victim was so concerned about his behaviour that she and her sister tried to form a barrier to prevent him reaching others in the queue.’

Security staff alerted police, the court heard.

Ms Arora added: ‘This incident was hugely distressing for the victim and her family who were with her at the time, and she behaved with composure and courage.

‘What Adio did was disgusting, especially given the sombre nature of the event and the dignity of the vast majority of people attending the lying-in-state during the period of national mourning.

‘I hope that this prosecution encourages others who have been affected by this type of assault to come forward.’

Adio has eight previous convictions for 29 offences, including sexual offences between 2020 and this year, and was handed an SHPO at Inner London Crown Court on August 3 which prohibits him from touching or exposing himself in a public place, save for a public toilet.

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