'I was raped 20 years ago. Help catch the man who did it'

03 September 2023 , 18:48

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A silhouette of a woman, not the rape survivor, is pictured (file image) (Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)

A woman who was raped at knifepoint in an hour-long ordeal has begged the public to help catch her attacker 20 YEARS on.

The survivor, who cannot be named, has spoken of her grief as police have renewed their appeal to catch the thug - and reissued an artist’s impression of him. The thug picked up and lifted the victim, then just 16, from a public footpath and into bushes, and brandished a blade before subjecting her to the terror.

Fighting her tears, the woman, now 36, told Mirror: "It's a case of someone stepping forward, whether it's an ex girlfriend, whether it's a ex wife, a wife, a daughter, a son, a relative. Someone is sitting on information, they've got to be and, whilst I accept that there could be probability he isn't alive anymore, I won't accept that because I think you should never give up on things like this.

"The fact is there are potentially these people who are capable of going on and ruining other people's lives, so there needs to be some accountability and they need to know that this is not forgotten, that it never will be, and that it will catch up with them someday. I am encouraging anyone who does recognise the picture, even if you know even a slight resemblance, then it could be life-changing for me and actually make me feel like I have some justice."

Northumbria Police have issued this e-fit of the attacker

The attack happened near Washington Village, Tyne and Wear, on July 22, 2003, as the woman made her way home from her summer job. She had got off the bus at a nearby stop, which was the first time and last time she did this, but minutes later was set upon by the thug. He threatened her, calling her vile profanities, as he took her virginity.

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Recalling the terror, the woman said: "He said, basically, 'unless you do what I want you to do, then I will kill you'. So from then, he held a knife to my throat... I had a black cardigan on, and he tied that around my head and said 'not to move'.

The attack happened in Washington Village in woodland off a footpath connecting residential roads

"I ran home and told my mam what had happened and she told the police... Now I think it's more about the everlasting impact it has on your life - where you go, who you go with. which way you go, how you get there. How are you getting back? What time do you go?

"I wake every day and pray that an offender will be caught, so that I can feel that someone has been made accountable for the horrendous impact this has had on my life. So please help me to find this man, who has not yet paid for his actions 20 years on. I need this case kept alive, so he knows this is not forgotten. Someone out there must know something and if you do, please come forward to help me to find justice."

The victim encountered a woman walking her dog minutes after the attack. The dog walker had done a loop through the woods with her pet, which had tried to pull away and take her to the distressed victim.

The rape survivor added: "A woman did actually walk past with her dog. I didn't know at the time (of the offence), but as I was trying to make my way home, I saw her and I'd said 'don't go along there, don't go along there' and I told her what happened. So she walked me home, and she said 'I walked past there before with the dog', so she must have done a loop round after the walk and she said 'he was trying to pull in there and I told him 'come out'."

Since the ordeal, the woman endured nightmares, and her relationships suffered. She's overcome these challenges though, and now works in an industry dominated by men. She said: "At the time, I wouldn't sleep in my own bedroom. I had nightmares and flashbacks and I still do today actually, but I've had to learn to try to overcome these and deal with these, which has been tough."

Detective Inspector Alan Cairns, of Northumbria Police, has appealed for fresh information (Newcastle Chronicle)

Northumbria Police launched a large-scale operation to try to identify the attacker, with detectives conducting more than 500 house-to-house inquiries, taking more than 350 statements and circulating the artist’s impression of the suspect. While there have been a number of public appeals for information, no one has yet been brought to justice.

And, at the victim's request, the appeal was renewed by police two decades on after the anniversary last month. The force concurs that "someone could still hold the key" to finally changing the woman's life and giving her justice. It said the attacker left the scene in a mahogany-coloured car following the sustained attack. The e-fit shows a white man, wearing a cap and a jacket or coat with a distinctive collar.

Speaking as part of the force's appeal, Detective Superintendent Alan Cairns, of Northumbria Police’s Safeguarding Department, is encouraging anyone who may have information to come forward. He said: “I want to recognise the immense and continuous courage the victim has shown throughout this time and we want to be able to bring her the justice she deserves. Twenty-years on from the attack, we are again appealing to the public to come forward if you have any information at all in relation to this case.

"While we recognise a number of years have now past, someone could still hold the key in helping bring justice. No matter how small or insignificant you feel what you know may be, we would urge you to come forward – it’s never too late to do the right thing."

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The victim noted the sex fiend had a Wearside, local accent, and appeared to know the area to have been able to quickly drag her to such a secluded spot. She said: "It was almost planned. It was premeditated, it was almost as if he was there waiting. It was very much a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. But also it very risky because it was daylight, it was summer, it was around 8pm so still bright."

Anyone with information is asked to ring 101 or visit the ‘Tell us Something’ section of the Northumbria Police website, quoting log NP-20230721-0267.

Bradley Jolly