17 year old convicted of sex attacks in South Norwood Park

BY TOBY PORTER
toby@slpmedia.co.uk

A 17-year-old boy has been sentenced to a 12-month Youth Rehabilitation order following a series of sexual assaults on women in a park.

The teenager, who cannot be named, was convicted at Wimbledon Youth Court on Wednesday, October 9 of three counts of sexual assault, two counts of theft and one count of robbery.

Detectives launched an appeal after four women reported they had been sexually assaulted and or robbed by a man while they walked their dogs through South Norwood Country Park between May 3 and July 21. All of the victims, aged between 45 and 63, were alone at the time of the incidents.

Additional patrols were put in place and on Monday, July 1 the defendant was arrested at his home address after CCTV footage led to his identification.

A sim card registered to him was later found to have been used in a phone stolen from one of the victims.
A Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) was also imposed on the teenager for a period of 12 months.

The SHPO requirements mean he will not be able to go out in open spaces unaccompanied.

Detective Constable Kathlyn Stanley-Quist, who led the investigation, said: “The defendant in this case brazenly targeted women who were alone in a park they used regularly – a community space in which they should have felt safe.

“These victims were left traumatised by these attacks and have had to relive their experiences again during this trial.

“This was a complex and fast-moving investigation in which the team trawled through hours of CCTV.

“We hope this conviction brings the victims in this case some form of closure, and demonstrates our commitment to getting dangerous individuals off the streets of London.”