A woman from Claverham in Somerset says she is scared to go out after enduring a “terrifying” encounter with a man wearing a gimp suit in a dark village lane. She was out a walk when she saw “someone charging at me in a full black rubbery suit”. The man darted towards her “grunting and breathing heavily” before he ran off.
Police said there had been a small number of reports of a man jumping out at people in the area. Officers were called to the scene at about 23:30 BST on Thursday and used a helicopter and sniffer dog in an unsuccessful search for the man.
The victim, in her 20s, said the experience had “hugely affected” her and spoke to the BBC on the condition of anonymity. She wanted to speak out so others don’t have to live in fear and terror.
I would never forgive myself if this happened to someone else and I hadn’t said anything, I was walking along with my torch and looked up to see someone charging at me in a full black rubbery suit and managed to take a picture.He kept coming towards me and was touching his groin, grunting and breathing heavy. As I tried to take a step back he was right in front of my face and he put his leg forward. I was just trying to assess the situation in my head quickly. Everything was running through my head. I thought: ‘This is it, I’m going to get attacked’.I was screaming and shouting and no-one came to help”
An Avon and Somerset Police spokesperson said:
“We’re aware of concerns relating to a man acting suspiciously in the Claverham/Yatton area.
We’re keeping an open mind about the motive for these incidents, it’s clear the individual responsible is deliberately attempting to cause alarm to the men and women he’s approaching.
While no-one has been hurt during the incidents, we fully appreciate the distress these actions have caused victims. Patrols in the area were being increased to reassure the public and identify the man responsible.”
Unity News Network (UNN) Staff Writer | To find out more details about our staff, please head to the About Us section on our website.
