Six men have been arrested on suspicion of seperate sexual offences in West Essex
10 May 2019, 15:39 | Updated: 10 May 2019, 15:53
Police have arrested six men on suspicion of sexual offences in connection with separate investigations in West Essex.
Officers in the public protection team are working to protect some of the most vulnerable victims of crime and bring offenders to justice.
This week officers from the team worked with those from other areas of the force to focus on arresting a number of individuals who were wanted in connection with ongoing investigations.
These were:
• A 27-year-old man from Grays was arrested on Tuesday 7th May after a woman reported she was assaulted earlier that day and had been raped a number of times over a two year period. He was arrested on suspicion of rape and assault.
• A 38-year-old man from Grays was arrested on Tuesday 7th May on suspicion of rape, administering a substance with intent to commit a sexual offence, assault, grievous bodily harm and false imprisonment between May 4th and 7th.
• A 66-year-old man from Harlow was arrested yesterday, Thursday 9th May, on suspicion of sexually assaulting a girl. The offence was alleged to have happened between July 2014 and September 2015 in Harlow and was reported in December 2018.
• A 43-year-old man from Felixstowe was arrested on Wednesday 8th May on suspicion of raping a woman in Brentwood between January 2017 and November 2018. The offence was reported on March 18th.
• A 29-year-old man of no fixed address was arrested after officers stopped a Volkswagen Touran on the A1089 in Tilbury yesterday, Thursday 9th May. He was arrested on suspicion of raping a woman in Stanford-le-Hope between September 2017 and April 2019 and assaulting her. He was also arrested on suspicion of possession of drugs and driving without insurance.
• A 20-year-old man from Purfleet was arrested on Wednesday 8th May on suspicion of raping a woman in Purfleet on April 26th. He was also arrested on suspicion of criminal damage after he ran from an officer and jumped over a fence, which broke, and possession of drugs with intent to supply, after he was found with suspected cannabis.
• A 38-year-old man from Grays was arrested on Tuesday 7th May on suspicion of rape, administering a substance with intent to commit a sexual offence, assault, grievous bodily harm and false imprisonment between May 4th and 7th.
• A 66-year-old man from Harlow was arrested yesterday, Thursday 9th May, on suspicion of sexually assaulting a girl. The offence was alleged to have happened between July 2014 and September 2015 in Harlow and was reported in December 2018.
• A 43-year-old man from Felixstowe was arrested on Wednesday 8th May on suspicion of raping a woman in Brentwood between January 2017 and November 2018. The offence was reported on March 18th.
• A 29-year-old man of no fixed address was arrested after officers stopped a Volkswagen Touran on the A1089 in Tilbury yesterday, Thursday 9th May. He was arrested on suspicion of raping a woman in Stanford-le-Hope between September 2017 and April 2019 and assaulting her. He was also arrested on suspicion of possession of drugs and driving without insurance.
• A 20-year-old man from Purfleet was arrested on Wednesday 8th May on suspicion of raping a woman in Purfleet on April 26th. He was also arrested on suspicion of criminal damage after he ran from an officer and jumped over a fence, which broke, and possession of drugs with intent to supply, after he was found with suspected cannabis.
Detective Chief Inspector Natalia Ross told Heart:
"Our dedicated team of specialist officers investigate some of the most traumatic crimes involving the most vulnerable of victims, such as sexual offences and domestic abuse.
We do everything we can to pursue and bring offenders to justice, and we supported this ongoing work this week by working with our operational support group and local policing colleagues to search for outstanding suspects.
We urge victims to not suffer in silence and to report offences to us so that we can investigate and ensure they receive support.
However we also understand some may not want to contact the police, so we encourage them to tell someone, whether that’s a close friend or relative, or one of a number of organisations who can provide support and advice."
Five suspects have been released on conditional bail and the 66-year-old man has been released under investigation while their enquiries continue. In each of the cases, the victims and suspects are known to each other.
