A man who admitted to sexually assaulting a woman on a bus in Wandsworth has been jailed.

Edward Chirmicii, 24, previously pleaded guilty to one count of sexual assault, and was sentenced to 16 months imprisonment on Friday (May 7).

The sexual assault happened around 1.15am on Monday, February 1, when Chirmicii's target, a woman, boarded a Route N87 bus on Wandsworth Road.

She sat on the lower deck, where Chirmicii was already on board.

"Within a matter of seconds, he moved to sit next to the woman before making lurid comments to her," a spokesperson for the Met Police described.

"When the woman refused to engage with him, he moved back across the aisle where he proceeded to watch a pornographic video on his phone.

"A short time later, the woman noticed him performing a sex act. He then got off the bus," the police statement read. 

Chirmicii then boarded another bus to complete his journey, but was arrested after the woman called the police who spotted him soon afterwards.

Mandy McGregor, TfL’s Head of Transport Policing and Community Safety, said: "It is right this utterly disgusting act committed by Chirmicii has been punished with the full force of the law. No one should have to endure this type of despicable behaviour, which thankfully is extremely rare, when travelling around London.

"Public transport is a safe, low crime environment, but we would urge anyone who does experience unwanted sexual behaviour on our network to come forward and report it to the police immediately.

"All reports are fully investigated and we work closely with the police to bring offenders to justice."

In addition to his jail sentence, Chirmicii was also given a five year sexual harm prevention order, placed on the sex offenders register for ten years and ordered to pay compensation to victim amounting to £1000 within 6 months.

"Chirmicii targeted a woman travelling alone on a bus. He made a number of unpleasant comments towards her, causing her to fear for her safety," PC Chris Bowman, from the Met's Roads and Transport Policing Command, said.

"Following the assault, he calmly boarded another bus to continue with his journey as if nothing had happened. The woman’s quick phone call to police ensured that he was caught.

"It is possible that Chirmicii may have carried out other offences. If this is the case, I would like to hear from anyone who recognises him.

"Everyone is entitled to travel safely on public transports, and any behaviour which prevents this will not be tolerated," he added.