Former Commonwealth Games 200m champion, Leon Baptiste, has been jailed in Morocco after being convicted in a case involving the sexual assault of a minor, bringing an end to weeks of uncertainty over the whereabouts of the former British sprinter.

🇳🇬 Here's What Happened

Baptiste, 41, was reported missing after travelling to Morocco, where he had been working as a consultant sprint coach for UK Athletics. Baptiste won award for England Athletics coach at the 2023 Sporting Equals Awards / GB Newsa

According to the BBC on Wednesday, a source at the Moroccan Ministry of Justice confirmed that Baptiste was taken into custody in Marrakech in May, subsequently found guilty and is now serving a 10-month custodial sentence at Al-Oudaya prison.

The source rejected reports that Baptiste had disappeared, saying, “The foreign national concerned had not lost contact with his surroundings and was not subject to any disappearance or unexplained absence.”

📌 Key Details

Morocco’s Public Prosecution Office separately confirmed Baptiste’s detention and imprisonment.

“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,” the office said.

The Moroccan authorities said limited disclosure of case details was not unusual within the country’s judicial system.

Baptiste had ceased communicating with the athletes he was coaching more than three months ago, leaving both the athletes and UK Athletics unable to account for his absence.

In May, he reportedly sent a brief message to the sprinters he was training, informing them he would be away from sessions “for a while.” He did not provide further details.

The athletes had been preparing for major championship competitions without their coach at a key stage of the season.

📰 Source: Punch Nigeria