A Heaven security guard accused of raping a 19-year-old woman was not permitted to work in the UK and used false ID to get a job at the nightclub, a court has heard. Morenikeji Adewole, 47, of Dartford, Kent, also gave a fake name to police when he was arrested following the alleged rape, Southwark Crown Court heard on Tuesday.
The defendant is on trial accused of raping the teenager in his car near the central London club in the early hours of November 1, 2024, which he denies. Jurors were previously told that the woman was visibly drunk and stumbling and that a person can be too intoxicated to give proper consent.
Adewole was in the UK on a five year tourist visa that did not allow him to work in the country, the jury heard for the first time on Tuesday. It also meant he could not stay for more than six months at a time and he returned to Nigeria when those stints were up, jurors were told.
The defendant previously pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of an identification document with improper intention. He was charged for having a false Immigration Residence Permit Identity Card under the name of Olusola Julius Alabi and a false SIA (Security Industry Authority) card with the name O Alabi.
The defendant had been employed at Heaven under the name Olusola Julius Alabi. Officers discovered his real name through fingerprint evidence after his arrest, jurors were told. Giving evidence, the defendant said he “used a false ID to obtain work, to get a job” and that it was “to make a living… to save for my partner – I’m the one who paid for the rent”.
He said he had come to the UK on vacation and later to find employment. Asked why he gave officers a false name, he said: “I was panicking, that’s the name people call me at my work.” At the time of the alleged rape he was living in an apartment with his partner and at work supervised three other Heaven security guards, the court heard.
He said he had met the complainant, who cannot be identified, months before the incident when she said hello to him by the club. On the the night of the alleged rape she said “hello uncle how are you”, “you look handsome” and later kissed him, he claimed. Adewole, who wore a blue suit and tie, added that “almost every night” at work he has “interactions” that can include people trying to kiss him.
He said he told her to stop and she later asked him for water. “I told her I can’t go inside the club to get her water, but I have water in my car,” he added. The defendant said he then took a work break and walked with the woman and her friend to his nearby Lexus and gave the friend water, which the complainant also drank.
He said the complainant needed the toilet and he went with her to a nearby tunnel, leaving the friend. The teenager asked him to join her because “the phone snatcher and the bag snatcher” operate in the “dodgy area”, he said. CCTV showed the defendant and the complainant in the tunnel and Adewole claimed they kissed there.
Footage appeared to show her stumbling in the tunnel that was behind a shutter. Prosecutor Marion Smullen said the complainant could be seen falling and asked Adewole why he did not radio for assistance. He said the teenager had not fallen but she “goes down” and that he would not contact welfare or a medic “for this kind of falling”.
Adewole claimed that the teenager said she “wanted sex from him” but that he told her this could not happen in the tunnel. The defendant then collected his car and drove the teenager to nearby Adelphi Terrace. He told the court he was wearing a hi-vis jacket with a body-worn camera, a walkie-talkie and an earpiece when they arrived.
It is alleged that he then raped her in the back seat of the parked vehicle. Adewole claimed there was sexual activity but he did not have penetrative intercourse with the woman. He removed his earpiece and camera but still had the radio on at that point, he said.
He added that the woman had earlier told him she was 25-years-old but in the car she said she was 19 and he “stopped immediately”. Asked why, the defendant said: “I can’t date someone below 25.” He said he has a science degree and had previously been employed as a hydraulic and civil engineer, meaning he worked on construction and roadworks. The trial continues.
