Picture shows: Demonstrator facing up to riot police in the Surrey town of Epsom following local anger about a sex attack which the police appear to be hiding details about from the public. (Picture from LBC)
On the 11th April of this year a young women who was returning from a night out at a nightclub in Epsom in Surrey was attacked and brutally raped by a gang of four men. At the time of writing Surrey police have not yet issued a description of the men, something that might be useful in catching them. Whilst I understand that there may be a lot of CCTV footage to have to examine and police forces do not have unlimited resources to do this, the delay in even putting out a basic description say for example from the complainant, is beginning to look a little suspicious.
Surrey Police’s senior leadership team have put out statements about how they don’t yet have enough information to release and that they are worried about speculation by the public increasing ‘community tensions’. It seems that Surrey Police could be using the same (failed) play book that police used following the Southport Atrocity where the police went out of their way to deny the public salient details such as the origin of the attacker, details that may well not have hampered or prejudiced any future trial. This behaviour by Surrey Police is looking to me to be more than a little dubious. It seems that Surrey Police might be more interested in dampening down public anger about a gang rape in an area that was once a relatively safe one than actually solving this vile crime.
Whilst I accept and agree with the idea that the public are not entitled to every bit of information that the police have, that’s the stuff that should be reserved for when the case comes to court, putting out a basic description of the suspects does not come into that informational category. Circulating a description of suspects is basic police work, it’s done in order to identify and hopefully catch the suspects. This case brings up quite a few questions. Is there not a description, even a basic one from the complainant? Has CCTV from the immediate area been identified and examined? Have any witness statements that might have a description of the suspects been properly examined?
Although I admit there might be issues with the complainants description of the alleged assailants such as recall being affected by trauma, surely whatever information the complainant might give be of use in catching these assailants? The police are claiming that they can’t release details of the alleged attackers because they have insufficient information to to do so. Once upon a time I might have trusted the police on this but after the rape gang scandals, the police behaviour following he Southport Atrocity, the Telford affair when West Mercia Police allowed Islamic Rape Gangs to carry on raping because they were frightened of being called ‘racist’ for acting, I’m less inclined to take the police’s word on this. Maybe they genuinely do not have a description, maybe the complainant wasn’t in a position to make any sort of definitive identification, maybe they haven’t completed CCTV examination or some other valid reason, or maybe the police know more than they are letting on and are holding back legitimate details because they are worried about the public’s reaction?
There’s little doubt in my mind that the residents of Epsom are angry at what has allegedly happened and have shown it. Frustration with the police and how they are stonewalling on basic information, even when that information could be used to help to apprehend the alleged attackers, possibly because the alleged assailants are Dinghy Invaders or similar, is boiling over in the town.
This frustration and the increase in tensions, something that is understandable bearing in mind the nature of the crime, has not been helped by the conduct of Surrey Police. As well as the complaints about the extreme lack of information about the alleged assailants, information that might be useful in apprehending them, anger at the police has also come about because of the way that a spontaneous demonstration against the police’s behaviour has been policed. A lot of people, hundreds from what I could see on social media, from Epsom and the surrounding areas turned up to picket the police station to demand not only that more information is released but that the police deal honestly with the people regarding the problem of sex attacks in general and sex attacks by Dinghy Invaders or similar. The response from Surrey Police was not to try to work with those who were upset at what had happened to this young girl but was instead to send in the heavy mob, police officers in full riot gear. Thankfully there was no trouble from the demonstrators and the police mostly, at least from what I could see, kept their hands to themselves, but the fact that Surrey Police were willing to send out riot police against ordinary British subjects who were justifiably angry at what had happened to one of their female residents, but who will not do the same for the various Jew hating Pally-wanker or eco-terrorist types, does look exceedingly ‘two tier’.
The police have failed to learn the lessons that the police should have learned following the Southport atrocity which is to be as open as legally possible with the public so that speculation doesn’t go too wild and therefore foment trouble. The fact that Surrey Police seem to be, at the time of writing, still stonewalling about basic information such as description of suspects, really is not a good look for them. It makes them look as if they’ve got something to hide from the public and who knows maybe they have got something that they are trying to hide from the public.
Personally I believe that Surrey Police should recognise that they are on a sticky wicket here and release what description data they have as this could help to catch those accused of this terrible crime. It should be possible to release this sort of data without compromising any future trial and should be done as soon as possible in order to turn down the heat that the local police have by their actions turned up.
Epsom is nearing boiling point because of this attack and the police need to act in order to stop the situation boiling over and they can do that by being honest with the public.
Link
Surrey Police statement on the increasingly tense situation following an alleged gang rape in Epsom.
