She was travelling alone on the Bakerloo line, between Waterloo and Lambeth North, when a man approached her just before midnight. He exposed himself, then dragged her from her seat to the floor and attempted to rape her.
The woman fought back—kicking, struggling, refusing to be pinned—and when the train pulled into Lambeth North at around 11.40pm on Saturday July 11, she fled the carriage and alerted station staff. Her attacker remained on board, later getting off at Elephant and Castle.
“Woman fights off attacker who dragged her to floor on Bakerloo line Tube; police release CCTV of suspect.”
British Transport Police have released CCTV images of a man they want to identify, though they have not accused him of any offence. Detectives believe he may have vital information about what happened. One line of inquiry, said Detective Sergeant Krishan Appannah, is that the man may be homeless.
“Our officers are supporting the victim following this horrific incident,” Appannah said. “We understand incidents of this nature are deeply concerning for the public and we’re appealing to them directly to help us identify the man in the CCTV footage. We are asking anyone who recognises the man in the images to text us his name to 61016 quoting reference 948 of 11 July. He may have vital information that could assist our ongoing investigation.”
Officers have been tracking the man’s movements and believe he was at Oxford Circus Underground station before the attack and at Piccadilly Circus afterwards. The investigation is ongoing, with police urging anyone with information to contact them on 0800 40 50 40 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. The woman is being supported by specialist officers, but the question remains: who is the man in the CCTV, and where is he now?