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Police release CCTV and appeal in investigation into sexual assault - Oxford
Police are appealing for information as part of an ongoing investigation into an allegation of serious sexual assault on a 17-year-old German girl.
The girl, who was staying with a host family in east Oxford while attending an English language course, had been out in Abingdon on Thursday 13 April on a trip with her class, returning to Oxford at around 6pm.
She then attended a church service at the St Mary Magdelen church before walking up the Cornmarket Street and onto the High Street to catch a bus to return to her host family.
However, at 9.40pm at the bus stop at
Queens Lane, she caught the wrong bus, the Oxford Bus Company number 4, which took her along the Iffley Road where she got off at the stop outside the Co-Op supermarket just before Donnington Bridge Road.
Police have released CCTV images taken on the bus as the girl got off at this stop.
Lost, the girl then walked for what she thinks was around four hours trying to find somewhere she recognised. Due to this amount of time she could well have walked into any of the nearby areas such as Rose Hill, Littlemore, Cowley or Iffley.
The victim was by this time scared and confused and claims that whenever she saw anyone on the street she would hide.
At around 2am she recalls walking in an area surrounded by houses, possibly an estate, when she was approached by two men who took her into a nearby house.
The victim remembers being held in an upstairs bedroom where she was submitted to a sexual assault by one of the men from the street and a third man.
At around 7am
on Friday 14 April one of the men let her out of the house and walked her a few streets away where he left her.
She then caught the first bus that she saw which took her back into the city centre where at 7.50am she entered the McDonalds restaurant on Cornmarket Street.
At around 8.20am she left the restaurant and went to her class on Pembroke Street where she told teachers what had happened and police were called.
The victim is white, around 5ft 7ins tall, of medium build with shoulder length brown hair which she was wearing in a pony-tail and a pale complexion. She has a Gothic-style, and was wearing a knee-length charcoal black coat, carrying a shoulder bag and speaks with a German accent
The first man, who took her from the street on the 13 April and who let her go on 14 April, was Asian, over 5ft 7ins tall, slim, with facial hair. When he walked her out of the house he was wearing a red hooded top with the hood up.
The second man, who took her fr
om the street, was shorter than the first but there is no further description.
The third man was dark skinned, possibly Asian, of medium build with a short beard.
Det Con Leila Kennett, of Oxford CID, said: ?This has been a complex investigation and we have been liaising closely with the victim, who returned to Germany shortly after the attack.
?We have now completed forensic investigations and interviews with the girl and I know turn to the public for their assistance.
?Because of the time she spent walking around after getting off that bus on the Iffley Road she could have been in any area nearby so we are struggling to identify a location for what was a serious and extremely traumatising attack.
?As the time drew on, she grew increasing scared and tried to avoid anyone she saw and it is possible that someone may remember seeing a girl matching this description acting strangely. I need to hear from anyone who believes they saw her either before or after th
e incident took place. If you were on that bus and recognise her from the CCTV then please get in touch.
?We have basic descriptions of the three men involved and I need to hear from anyone who has any information on them, particularly if they remember seeing an Asian man wearing a red hooded top walking with a girl on the morning of Friday 14 April.
?Finally, I would like to appeal directly to those men possibly involved to come forward and give an account of what happened. We do have forensic evidence which will allow us to easily eliminate people from our enquiry.?
Anyone with any information can contact Det Con Kennett at Oxford CID via the Police Enquiry Centre on 0845 8 505 505.
If you do not want to speak to police and do not want to leave your name you can pass information to the Crimestoppers charity on 0800 555 111.