Rape update: man released on bail

Sunday 10 November 2019

A 36-year-old man has now been released on police bail, after being arrested in connection with the rape of a teenage girl in Gorey at Halloween.

Jersey Police arrested the man on Friday, after a week of house-to-house enquiries, CCTV analysis and appeals for witnesses to come forward.

They say they are keeping an open mind about the identity of the attacker, and so have also released a computer-generated picture of the man they are looking for, based on descriptions from the victim - she has also said the man has a small gap between his top two front teeth.

Pictured: the 'e-fit' image issued by Police. 

The full description is as follows: around 5’9, with a big and strong build with thick brown hair and a short brown/grey beard. He was also said to be wearing a coat that was too big for him and a baseball cap, and spoke with what Police have described as a "foreign" accent.

At the end of last week, they published a route map of the steps taken by the victim in the lead up to the attack, and a video reconstruction. 

Pictured: the route map published by Police. 

As part of Operation Hectare, the Police clarified what they believe happened one week ago:

• "11:30pm – The victim leaves a residential property in the area adjacent to Gorey Common on her own.
• She slowly makes her way to the southbound Gorey bus stop but becomes disoriented around Gorey Common, primarily because of the low light combined with her lack of familiarity with that part of the Island.
• The victim arrives at the bus stop by 11:53pm.  At this point she is identifiable on dashcam footage from a passing Liberty Bus. 
• She is seen at the bus stop again at 12:06am when the same bus passes in the opposite direction.
• Her mother collects her from the bus stop at 12:13am. 
• In her time at the bus stop the attacker twice offers her a lift, which is declined on both occasions.  It is after the second offer that the attack takes place."

Anyone with any information is asked to contact the Police on 612214 or 612612, or the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111, or via their anonymous online form at www.crimestoppers-uk.org.