Hotel owner molested girls after they went to see his cats
A HOTEL owner is facing jail for molesting two young girls in his bedroom after he offered to show them his pet cats.
Adam Saleem, a former Army intelligence officer and IT consultant, was told by a judge he faced an ‘inevitable’ prison sentence.
Saleem, 46, based at Hale Barns House guest house on Hasty Lane, Hale Barns, denied two counts of sexual assault but was found guilty by a jury after a trial at Manchester’s Minshull Street Crown Court. He was released on bail ahead of sentencing.
The court heard the victims were staying with their parents at Saleem’s hotel last year.
They were booked into the £2m guest house for a night ahead of a flight from nearby Manchester Airport.
The court heard the girls were ‘touched inappropriately’ after Saleem shut his bedroom door.
The attack only ended when their unsuspecting father knocked on the door, walked inside and told the girls it was their bedtime. At the time, the youngsters were too scared to say what happened and the family went on holiday, the jury heard.
But the truth emerged six months later when the older of the two victims told her mother after their father watched a TV programme about a missing child and told his daughters they could talk to him if they ever had encounters with ‘nasty men.’
She was later interviewed by police, but the court heard the second victim was too young for officers to speak to.
In a statement, the older of the two sisters said: “He’s got three cats so we went into his room, my older sister and my little sister and me.
“We went into the room and he offered if we wanted to see the cats so we went in and my older sister, she went to stroke the cats on the other side of the room and then he started to touch us.
“I felt too scared to say anything but then my dad came in. He didn’t know what happened. It went on for around 50 seconds.
“He just kept doing it and doing it. I was just scared and he did the same thing to my sister. We were chasing the cats and he offered if we wanted to come into his room as he had a lot of cats.”
Nicola Gatto, prosecuting, told the jury: “During the holiday and afterwards the parents noticed a change in their daughter and described her as being very emotional and clingy and didn’t speak about their holiday upon their return. They were quite concerned about her.
“[Later that year] the father watched a film which had an impact on him about a child that had gone missing. He spoke to his daughters, alongside his wife, and said if they were ever worried about anything, they could talk to him. The eldest daughter told her sister that she had to tell someone, and then said that the defendant was not a nice man.”
Father-of-three Saleem, who the court heard had been a revered figure at his local mosque, denied any wrongdoing.
He told the jury: “The parents were sorting out their room and I left my room open in case they needed something.
“I dozed off and I became aware the children had come into my room and were stroking the cats.
“A few moments later their father came into the room and apologised to me for them disturbing me and he took the children out. I did not touch the children in any way. I am completely innocent.”
Saleem was ordered to sign the sex offenders register and banned from allowing children into his guest house ahead of the sentencing hearing on September 28.