A man has admitted sexually assaulting a female police officer.

Kelvin Green, 46, had been due to stand trial in August on the allegation he touched the woman, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, in Oxford in September last year.

He failed to produce a defence statement setting out his objections to the prosecution case – then failed to turn up to a court hearing on Tuesday.

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He was arrested on a court-issued warrant overnight and appeared before Judge Michael Gledhill QC on Wednesday.

Emma Hornby, defending, asked for the charge of sexual assault to be put to her client again. Read the charge by the court clerk, Green, of Bullstake Close, Oxford, pleaded guilty on a basis.

His barrister said Green was sorry for his non-attendance at court on Tuesday. His solicitors had lost touch with him after Green lost his phone and failed to properly check his post.

“He was frank with me. He’s buried his head in the sand in terms of this particular case,” she told the judge.

Jailing him for 28 days for failing to turn up to Tuesday’s hearing, Judge Gledhill told Green: “You knew perfectly well when you were granted bail, bearing in mind the pages of previous convictions you’ve got, when the court makes an order it expects it to be complied with.”

Green will return to court on July 6, when the Crown Prosecution Service will confirm whether the basis of plea is accepted. The basis was not read to the court on Wednesday.

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This story was written by Tom Seaward. He joined the team in 2021 as Oxfordshire's court and crime reporter.  

To get in touch with him email: Tom.Seaward@newsquest.co.uk

Follow him on Twitter: @t_seaward