A girl of 11 was subjected to a horrifying two-hour rape in a park after
being snatched as she walked home from school. The child was taken to hospital
with severe injuries after the attack and has since undergone surgery. Police
revealed yesterday that her ordeal began when she got off a bus on Friday at
around 4.30pm.
Scene of the attack: A police car patrols outside Jubilee Park in Enfield, where an 11-year-old girl was subjected to a 'brutal' sexual assault on Friday evening
Sensing she was being followed by a man, she crossed the road several
times to try to shake him off. Moments later he caught up with her and dragged
her off the street. He then pulled her into a nearby park where he raped her. The
victim finally got home around 8pm and told her distressed parents what had
happened and they took her to hospital.
The attack took place in Jubilee Park, which lies opposite a row of
smart houses in the affluent North London suburb of Enfield. Detective
Inspector Simon Ellershaw, who is leading the investigation, said it was a
‘horrific attack on a defenceless young girl’. ‘It doesn’t need me to say how
serious an attack this is,’ he said. ‘We come across this type of assault on
very rare occasions and are treating it with the utmost seriousness. The girl
is still in hospital and has had to have surgery to treat her severe injuries. She
is being supported by her family and of course I’m hoping she will be able to
make a full recovery.’ Officers from Scotland Yard’s Sapphire Unit, which
investigates rape and sexual assault in the capital, have interviewed the
victim in hospital.
'Brutal' attack: This section of the park was closed off as police searched for clues following the attack shortly after 4.15pm on Friday
Mr Ellershaw said the girl told officers the attack went on for two
hours. Describing her walk home, the detective said: ‘At some point she has
become aware that someone was following her, and she crossed the road a couple
of times because of this. Then she was dragged into a park and subjected to a
brutal sexual assault. She got back home at about 8pm – almost three and a half
hours after she got off the bus. Clearly that is a long time and
witnesses may well have seen her wandering the streets in a dishevelled state.’
'Dragged': The girl was followed as she got off her school bus and dragged into the park before being sexually assaulted
Yesterday teams of officers made house-to-house inquiries in the hope
someone may have seen the attacker or the victim. Up to 60 officers are working
on the investigation. Mr Ellershaw added: ‘We are concentrating all our efforts
in capturing this individual and we are conducting extra patrols in the area to
reassure the public and prevent any further attacks. We are interested in
speaking to anyone in the Jubilee Park area between 4.15pm and 7.45pm on
Friday, and may have seen anyone acting suspiciously or anyone following a girl
in school uniform.’
Manhunt: Police are looking for a black male with an afro-style haircut, wearing a grey top and black baggy jeans
Police described the suspect as a black male with afro hair wearing a
dark grey top and black baggy jeans. Local residents spoke of their disbelief
that such an attack had happened within yards of commuters walking home. Lewis
Francis, 28, said: ‘I imagine the poor girl’s family must have thought it would
be safe for her to walk home in the afternoon from the bus stop because lots of
people are about at that time. People I know are not going to let their
children walk to school alone now – at least not until he is caught.’
Source: Daily Mail UK
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