Woman claims police failed her over sexual assault from sex offender during Uber journey
Police said there was insufficient evidence
A woman who claims she was molested in the back of an Uber taxi by a convicted sex offender has accused the police of failing to pursue a witness that could prove her allegations.
The complainant slammed Hampshire police for “failing to protect me and the public” after saying the Uber taxi driver was never approached as a potential witness following the incident in the car with a man she had been on a date with.
The female had been out for drinks with the male after reconnecting over social media having met years before on dating site Tinder.
During the journey back to her Waterlooville home from Gunwharf Quays on June 8 the woman said she was subjected to a concerted sexual assault by the male. “He put his arm around me and hand down my top and was trying to get into my trousers,” she said.
“I had to take his hand out. I was so embarrassed, especially with it being in the back of a taxi. I said ‘no’ twice and removed him from my clothing twice. No means no.”
When the man was subsequently questioned over his behaviour, the woman said he nonchalantly replied: “It’s a universal experience.” She responded: “It’s not normal.”
She says she felt coerced into letting the man come back to her address, and that he then said to her he “wanted to have sex”. The woman, feeling under pressure from his advances, said: “I said ‘no’ before I gave in. I felt like I had to have sex.”
To her horror, the man later told her about being jailed for previous sexual assaults on women - and that he was still on licence following his release. “I felt weird about what happened. I didn’t want him to touch me in the back of the taxi,” she said.
The complainant, who is not pursuing police after having sex with the man at her address, is angry the force has not spoken with the taxi driver on the way home after she reported the incident. She gave a video interview to officers who took her clothes for examination.
A week later the alleged attacker was arrested before being released on bail. However, the woman says he has now been remanded back to prison for breaching his licence conditions.
The woman said she has hit a brick wall with police and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) “believing he had consent” and based on the evidence available could not prove to the criminal standard that a crime had been committed.
She said: “I am extremely concerned that potentially important evidence was not pursued. The taxi driver, who was present during the journey, has to my understanding never been contacted and the police made no effort to contact the driver.
“There may also have been CCTV and/or audio recording equipment in the taxi. Police have stated that they did not contact the taxi driver or seek to obtain any CCTV/audio recordings as they felt that even if they did it would not meet the threshold.
“This is particularly concerning because the CPS’s stated reason for not proceeding relates directly to the circumstances surrounding consent and the suspect’s alleged belief in consent. A witness who was physically present in the vehicle, and any available CCTV or audio, could potentially have provided relevant evidence.”
The complainant also believes the fact the man is on the sex offenders register for previous sexual assaults means police should have looked deeper into matters.
“There is another aspect of the case that I believe warrants scrutiny,” she said. “The suspect had previously been released from prison and was on licence in connection with previous offences involving sexual attacks on other women. I was not informed of this at the time. I subsequently became aware of his previous history and the fact that he was subject to a licence.
“I understand that previous convictions do not automatically prove that a new allegation occurred. My concern is whether relevant information about the suspect’s circumstances and risk was properly considered, and whether I should have been informed about information relevant to my safety.
“I am currently pursuing the Victims’ Right to Review process. However, I would like to understand whether the apparent failure to pursue the taxi driver/CCTV, alongside the circumstances surrounding the suspect’s previous offending and licence, raises wider questions about how my case was handled.”
She added: “You have a known sex offender who is on licence for attacking other women and police won’t look into it. It’s a complete failure to protect me and the public.
“If I had been murdered then police would definitely have spoken to the taxi driver so it feels like they are not taking it seriously enough. They are not following all lines of enquiry. I feel like I’ve been failed by the people who are meant to look after me.
“Police said I can review things through the Victims’ Right to Review but because there is no new evidence from the police - as they haven’t spoken with the taxi driver - the CPS will not review it, so I’m stuck.”
The woman now feels as though she is being “ignored” by police since receiving a message from an officer saying they could no longer pursue the case.
The text, seen by The News, read: “So the lawyer has said essentially that there isn’t really any point in contacting the Uber driver or seeing if there’s any audio or CCTV as that won’t meet the threshold? Hence why no one has contacted the driver?”
In a statement to The News, however, police suggested they did try to contact the Uber driver. A spokesperson said: “We were called shortly after 9.50pm on Saturday, June 13 to a report that a 27-year-old woman had been sexually assaulted by a named suspect in a vehicle in Portsmouth on the evening of Monday, June 8.
“An investigation was undertaken into the report, however enquiries did not identify and locate any relevant witnesses, including the driver of the vehicle.
“A 26-year-old man from Southampton arrested on suspicion of sexual assault was released without charge [and faced] no further action on Friday, August 14 following consultation with the Crown Prosecution Service. The victim has been informed of how to access the Crown Prosecution Service Victims Right To Review Scheme.”