A sexual predator left a stranger fearing "he was going to be raped” in an attack inside public toilets late at night.

The man managed to fight off Sasha Mazouz, who had been drinking heavily, before fleeing the cubicle in Canterbury.

Mazouz, of Folkestone, was jailed at Canterbury Crown Court yesterday after pleading guilty to assault and committing an offence with intent to commit a sexual offence.

The court heard the 44-year-old had been seeking male companionship in the city’s nightclubs during a summer evening last year.

After acting “particularly amorously” towards men queuing for McDonald's in St George’s Street, he entered a public toilet in Canterbury Lane, it was reported.

Mazouz’s victim, who was unknown to him, entered the public conveniences shortly afterwards. But when he attempted to leave a cubicle, he was pushed back inside and subjected to the terrifying attack.

“As he entered the toilets you pushed him into the cubicle, causing him to spin round, and you placed your hand on his back, pushing him over,” Judge Mark Weekes told Mazouz.

“Believing he was going to be raped,” his distraught victim managed to fight him off and flee the scene before contacting the police, the court heard.

Prosecutor Lucy Lutham said it was understood Mazouz, who remained in the cubicle for 10 minutes following the attack, was also under the influence of drugs.

He was arrested at the scene, during which time, he repeatedly tried to engage in inappropriate language with a male officer.

In a victim impact statement, the man told how he subsequently suffered anxiety and was forced to take days off work to help come to terms with the assault.

The court heard Mazouz has a “most unattractive” criminal past with 17 convictions, including serious sexual offences and robbery with an imitation firearm.

In 2013 he was convicted of sexually assaulting a teenage boy after giving him alcohol and the drug poppers, alongside making indecent images of a child.

Representing Mazouz, Fiona McAddy said on Thursday he had entered early guilty pleas and only went into the public toilets “to use them,” rather than premeditate an attack.

She said Mazouz had “gone out for an evening in the town to attend a number of clubs and there was some hope he would find some sexual companionship”.

But she stressed “when it became clear (his victim) was not interested in him, he immediately allowed him to leave” the toilet.

Judge Weekes jailed Mazouz, of Charlotte Street, for 14 months.

It means he will be released from HMP Elmley next week, having served seven months on remand, with the remainder of his sentence to be served on licence.

Mazouz will also be made subject to notification requirements for 10 years.

Detective Constable Ella Russell of the Canterbury Vulnerability Investigation Team, who led the investigation, said: "I would like to thank the victim for his bravery in reporting these offences and supporting the prosecution.

"As a result of this, we were able to make a swift arrest and ensured that Mazouz faced the consequences of his actions.

"Kent Police takes all allegations of assault seriously and I hope that the sentencing brings comfort to the victim involved."