Libyan hotel asylum seeker is jailed for just 15 weeks for groping a girl who told him she was 15

No one has confirmed whether Taha Derwish, 26, will be deported once his sentence ends. He was appealing a refused asylum claim and living at the Royal Hotel in Crewe when he targeted a group of girls on Nantwich Road in September 2025. Cheshire Police arrested him within 10 minutes of the girls' call. He admitted sexual assault and appeared by videolink from HMP Altcourse.

He made several unwanted advances towards the group before touching one girl's bottom.

Detective Sergeant George Booth praised the girls for trusting their instincts and calling police.

Booth warned: 'This behaviour has no place in our communities.'