Leon Baptiste, 41, a former British sprinter and Commonwealth Games gold medallist who was reported missing, has been jailed in Morocco after being convicted of sexually assaulting a minor. The conviction ends weeks of uncertainty over his whereabouts after he travelled to the North African country, where he had been working as a consultant sprint coach for UK Athletics.
Background of the case and initial disappearance
Neither UK Athletics, for whom Baptiste worked as a consultant sprinting coach, nor the sprinters he coached knew why he was out of contact. In May, Baptiste sent the group of athletes he coached a short message saying he would be absent from training "for a while." They were given no further explanation.
Over the weekend, he was reported in the media as being "missing" and was said to have disappeared in Morocco. On Tuesday, a brief email was sent to the people coached on behalf of Baptiste — the 200m gold medallist at the 2010 Commonwealth Games — in which he resigned from the position, citing unspecified ill health.
Official confirmation from Moroccan authorities
A source at the Moroccan Ministry of Justice confirmed to BBC Sport that Baptiste was arrested in Marrakech in May, has subsequently been convicted, and is now serving a custodial sentence in Al-Oudaya prison. "In relation to the reports concerning the alleged 'disappearance of Leon Baptiste' — an English athletics coach reportedly missing in Morocco for more than two months under questionable circumstances — please note that the information published in this regard is inaccurate and does not reflect the facts of the case," said the source.
"The foreign national concerned had not lost contact with his surroundings and was not subject to any disappearance or unexplained absence. He is currently being held at the local prison in Marrakech, where he is serving a custodial sentence following his conviction by the competent judicial authorities in connection with a misdemeanour case." They added that Baptiste was "in good health."
Nature of the conviction and international response
A spokesperson for the Morocco Public Prosecution Office confirmed the sentence and nature of the conviction, adding: "The British national is currently being held at the local prison in Marrakech, where he is serving a custodial sentence following a court judgment against him in connection with his involvement in a criminal case." In Morocco, a minor is deemed to be under 18.
Asked directly about Baptiste, a UK Foreign Office spokesperson said: "We are supporting a British national who is detained in Morocco and are in contact with the authorities."
