A JUDGE has told a dentist - convicted of groping a young woman - that she hopes he will be returning to general practice soon.

Dr Martin Kono Abe, 36, was spared jail at Preston Crown Court yesterday for the sex assault at a Blackburn and Darwen surgery, which took place between April and May 2005.

Now it has emerged that Kono Abe, who used to live in Broomhill Avenue, Darwen, wants to resume his career in his new home in the Midlothian area of Scotland.

He was suspended by the General Dental Council last September, after police investigations into his conduct began.

Passing sentence, Judge Pamela Badley said: "I sincerely hope that you will be allowed to resume the work for which you have been trained."

Following the conclusion of Kono Abe's trial in March, Judge Badley commented that the groping, where he grabbed a young woman's breasts, was "not the most serious of sexual assaults, but it is nasty for the victim concerned."

Kono Abe was found not guilty of carrying out two sexual assaults on the same woman on different occasions.

He was also cleared of indecently assaulting another woman, between April and August 2005, and the judge directed a not guilty verdict on another charge during the trial.

The judge gave Kono Abe a 12-month community order, where he will be supervised by the probation service, and must complete 80 hours of community service.

Philip Andrews, defending, said his client had maintained his not guilty pleas throughout the case.The court heard that the Cameroon-born dentist was in thousands of pounds worth of debt, and it was unclear whether his career was over or not.

A General Dental Council spokesman said: "We have been aware of the court case into Mr Kono Abe. His case has been referred from the Council's Preliminary Proceedings Committee (PPC) for a full public hearing by the professional conduct committee (PCC).

"As an interim measure, and pending the full public hearing by the PCC, his registration was suspended on September 12, 2006, by the interim orders committee. This means he cannot practise dentistry.

"We are waiting confirmation of the sentencing and will then proceed with our hearing.

"The GDC treats information of this nature very seriously and will consider the information that emerged from the trial."