Kate Abdo is the legal age of consent in the United Kingdom. In order for a person to be entitled to legal working age in the United Kingdom, one needs to have attained a particular age. In addition to this, to be entitled to legal working age in the United Kingdom, one also has to have the consent of a parent or guardian, or an authority figure of seniority from within the UK. Kate Abdo was arrested on suspicion of sexual offences involving young boys and girls, after she was spotted at a shop in Manchester city centre on 4th August 2021 by detectives from Merseyside Police. It is reported that Kate Abdo was inside the store when the police arrived and she denied any knowledge of the arrests and interviews were conducted by the detectives with her on the day she went missing.
This article will focus on the legal questions raised by Kate Abdo’s employer, Halesowen plc, regarding the manner in which she could work whilst she was under the influence of alcohol and drugs. It is understood that Abdo was placed on temporary staff at Halesowen while the Police investigations continued. A few days later, the firm announced that Kate Abdo had left the firm and would not be returning. The Police issued a warrant for her arrest, and Kate Abdo was subsequently arrested at her home on 5th September 2021, at approximately midday. She was taken to a central booking cell where she remained for about half an hour before being released without charge. Her solicitor, Mr Martin Banks, argued that Abdo should have been entitled to remain in custody immediately on release, however, Miss Abdo failed to attend the preliminary hearing, and the warrant was not subsequently exercised.
Halesowen said that there were several safeguarding issues surrounding the circumstances of the case. Kate Abdo was a national registered sex offender, who had previously been convicted of indecent offences in three countries. He was already known to the Police as a sexual offender, having previously served time in jail for forcing a female victim into sexual slavery. Mr Banks claimed that Kate Abdo was aware that he was a sexual offender when he committed this offence against his partner. He added that the Police and the courts were aware of this fact but chose not to make any arrests as they did not want to place Abdo in a position where he would be able to commit further offences against other people.