A MAN has been jailed for two years and eight months for trying to kidnap a girl aged 11 near Colchester’s Castle Park.

Mawande Sicwebu, 27, approached the girl and a boy in George Street, Colchester.

He told the boy to walk towards the park and led the girl towards nearby Taylor Court.

A court heard how Sicwebu grabbed her by the wrist and punched her chest and stomach, winding her, as well as slapping her face.

Catherine Bradshaw, prosecuting at Ipswich Crown Court, said a “lucky” phone call from the girl’s father potentially stopped the situation escalating.

He called his daughter about 40 minutes after the abduction attempt started and could hear her crying and shouting: “A man is trying to kidnap me”.

He told her to run and called police.

Members of the public who saw the incident unfold also called police and flagging down officers in the area.

The court heard it appeared to be a completely random abduction attempts with no obvious pre-planning.

Sicwebu was arrested and told officers he had begun to feel sick and was seeking assistance.

He had been drinking from 10am to 4pm on the day of the incident, on October 12 last year.

Sicwebu, of Holmes Road, Halstead, admitted child abduction and assault. The court was told Sicwebu’s heavy drinking, and high stress levels, due to a recent promotion at work, were the only possible reasons for his behaviour Catherine McCulhah, mitigating, said: “He is distressed about the crime he has committed and the effect it has had on the victim.

“His two main regrets are for the victim, and the additional stress he has put on his young family.”

Eight character references were submitted to the judge, while mitigation explained how Sicwebu arrived in the UK as a four-year-old, worked to get an education, earned an Open University degree as a young father and gained employment as a mental health carer.

However, Recorder Andrew Shaw said the potential effect on the victim was the overriding factor as he jailed him for a total of 32 months.

He said: “I hope these remarks send a message to you, and others who consider committing similar crimes.

“No adult person can place themselves in the position of an 11-year-old child who has been taken, or even understand the shock of stranger taking them to an unknown place.

“You had been drinking for a considerable period on the day in question and have admitted you are ashamed of your actions.

“You have a child of your own and should be ashamed.

“What is unforgivable is you hit her while sending her friend away. “All she did was leave school and try to return home.”