Detectives want to identify a man wearing high visibility clothing who may have seen the victim and suspect of a sex assault after a car they were travelling in stopped on the A2. The victim had left a nightclub in Railway Street, Chatham during the early hours of Saturday 3 February 2024, when she got into a blue convertible Mercedes, believing it to be a taxi.
It is reported she was assaulted by the driver, before he stopped the car outside a kebab shop in Watling Street, Gillingham, close to the junction with Holmside.
The suspect is alleged to have prevented the woman from leaving the car before driving away. Further offences were carried out before the car stopped at the victim’s home and she managed to leave.
Detective Constable Kelly Hui said:
‘We are appealing to anyone who may have seen a man approaching women in Chatham, or who was later seen acting suspiciously in Gillingham.
‘The car stopped in Watling Street at around 4am and pulled up onto the pavement as a man wearing a high visibility jacket was walking by. We believe he was looking at what was going on in the vehicle and are urging him to come forward.’
Anyone with information should contact Kent Police on 01474 366149, quoting reference 46/XY/10998/24 or you can also call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111 or complete the online form.
A 25-year-old man from Chatham was arrested on Tuesday 6 February and charged with three counts of sexual assault, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and false imprisonment. He is currently remanded in custody until a hearing at Maidstone Crown Court on 4 March.