AN Indian restaurant manager from Monmouth has pleaded guilty to one count of common assault at Swansea Magistrates' Court.

The court heard that an 18-year-old female had been out with friends in the city centre and was "very drunk" when she decided to make her way home alone.

She was being "guided" down an alley leading off Wind Street by 28-­year-old Mohammed Rofiq-Ul Alam of Drybridge Street when two students intervened.

Andrew Smith, for the prosecution, said the complainant only had a vague recollection of what happened after she left Jack Murphy's bar in search of a taxi.

He said: "A man approached her, saying something to the effect that she should go with him. He took hold of her left arm, and she was then guided towards an alleyway that runs down to the Strand.

"She remembers two young men coming down the alleyway. The next thing she remembers was walking towards Wind Street where she saw two police officers in uniform."

The court was shown CCTV footage from the alleyway which showed Alam and the woman being approached by two young men. Alam initially blocks the woman from leaving with them with his arm, but then allows her to go.

His solicitor, Steve Harrett, said Alam's only motivation in the 13th November incident was to help the woman find a taxi.

The court heard details of the subsequent police interview with one of the students, 20-year-old Danny Clissold.

The Swansea University law student said he was outside the Revolution bar in the early hours of the morning when he saw a woman "stumbling around" in Wind Street.

Concerned for her welfare he kept an eye on her, and when he saw her being led down the alleyway he turned to the man next to him – another student who he did not know – and said the situation looked "a bit dodgy" and they should follow the couple.

The prosecutor said when the students asked the woman if she was okay, "they thought the woman was mouthing the words 'help me'."

The students then told Alam they knew the woman and that she was going with them.

The pair escorted the woman to Wind Street and informed a member of door staff at Revolution, who radioed for police – a few seconds later officers arrived.

Alam also returned to Wind Street, where he was subsequently arrested by police.

The chairwoman of the bench, Jan Langton, praised the actions of the public-spirited students, saying: "What you did that night was very brave – thank you for going to help."

Sentencing was adjourned for reports.