The Police and Crime Commissioner Lisa Townsend has thanked the local community in Epsom for their patience and understanding after Surrey Police announced they had closed their investigation into a report of a rape in the town.
The Force said last night that following a thorough investigation they were confident that there was no offence and there were no suspects after a confused report was given by a woman who had suffered an accidental head injury during a night out on April 11.
Lisa said: “The last two weeks have been extremely challenging for the local community in Epsom and I would like to thank them for their patience and understanding. I hope the update from Surrey Police last night provides the reassurance the public have been seeking around the circumstances of this case.
“I have been kept updated by senior officers throughout and I know how extensive the enquiries have been to establish the full facts of what happened.
“This has included piecing together CCTV, gathering witness statements and obtaining forensic evidence that was crucial to understanding the sequence of events. All of this takes time and must be completed. diligently as the public would rightly expect.
“I know much has been said about the information police have put into the public domain as this case progressed and there are of course always lessons to be learnt.
“As I am sure people will appreciate, as the evidence began to point in a certain direction, it would not have been appropriate to provide a running commentary on the investigation at such a delicate stage until all enquiries had been completed and the conclusion reached.
“Sadly, this situation was exploited by some who used legitimate concerns local residents may have had around the safety of women and girls in our communities to push a far more sinister narrative.
“Instead of exercising some degree of patience and restraint and letting the police do their job to establish the facts, we had numerous social media commentators, politicians and ‘experts’ lining up to give their theories on a case they had limited knowledge of. Many of them quite frankly should know better.
“There were some accusations that Surrey Police were withholding descriptions or CCTV images due to the ethnicity of the suspects which were plain wrong. If it were true – as Police and Crime Commissioner for this county I would have been the first to shout about this.
“This speculation and misinformation were the pre-cursor to the appalling scenes of disorder we witnessed in the town earlier and I know that the police investigation into that is continuing.
“The safety of women and girls in all our communities in Surrey has always been one of my key priorities as Commissioner and something I will continue to advocate for during the rest of my tenure. The seriousness with which Surrey Police treated this allegation demonstrates that they share that commitment.”