Greater Manchester Police have agreed to pay compensation to a homeless woman who woke up in her tent at night to find a stranger touching her while he carried out a sexual act on himself.
Despite reporting the incident to police, the case was closed shortly afterwards without officers having taken a formal statement from the woman or a witness. It was also claimed that had the police undertaken a proportionate investigation they would have established a link to four other sexual assaults on other women.
At the time of the incident the vulnerable woman was sleeping on the streets of Manchester City Centre. One night, in August 2020, she woke to find the man in her tent with his hand inside her clothes. Our client immediately reported the incident to police and officers arrived at the scene. However, our client maintained they spoke to her only briefly in the back of a patrol car.
CCTV footage was later reviewed by police and then the sexual assault case was closed. No formal statements were taken from our client, or her partner who was a witness, and no other potential witnesses were interviewed.
Our client discussed the sexual assault with other homeless women in the days after and, disturbingly, four others said they had also experienced a similar assault.
We, and our client, believe that had officers undertaken a proportionate investigation they would have established a link to all five sexual assaults. Formal statements should have been taken from all five women and other CCTV should also have been reviewed; had these appropriate actions been taken we believe the outcome could have proved more fruitful.
‘These sexual assaults on vulnerable homeless women in Manchester City Centre were not minor offences’
Greater Manchester Police has agreed to pay our client £2,800. Nicola Bailey-Gibbs, associate at Hudgell Solicitors in Criminal Injuries and Civil Liberties, who represented the woman said the consequences of the police officers’ actions in failing to investigate could have been catastrophic:
“We know that Sarah Everard’s killer was exposing himself in public before going on to commit a murder, these offences simply cannot be taken lightly. Investigations are underway into how police forces handled allegations that Wayne Couzens indecently exposed himself and whether the appropriate actions were taken, including whether policies and procedures were followed.
“These sexual assaults on vulnerable homeless women in Manchester City Centre were not minor offences and these officers should not have treated them as minor offences. They were a series of disturbing sexual assaults that should have prompted concern amongst officers whose job it is to protect the public, whoever they may be and whatever circumstances they find themselves in.
“This may well have been a serial sex attacker and Greater Manchester Police officers appear not to have been open to that possibility. Sexual assaults cannot be ignored, by doing so the consequences could be catastrophic. My client and other vulnerable women deserve better, and I hope the Greater Manchester Police Force has reviewed the way it responds to and investigates reports of sexual assaults.”
There has been an increase in the number of sexual offences recorded by the police in England and Wales in 2021 – including the highest number of rapes. Within a 12-month period up to September the figures show:
- 170,973 sexual offences were recorded – a 12% increase on 2020
- Rape accounted for 37% of those cases
- The 63,136 rape cases are the highest recorded to date
A week long #itsnotok campaign is underway dedicated to bringing together organisations and communities to promote awareness of sexual abuse and sexual violence. Sexual Abuse & Sexual Violence Awareness Week also emphasises the need for crimes to be reported so that police forces and other institutions take the growing number of reported cases more seriously.
According to figures from the Office for National Statistics Crime Survey for England and Wales, published in March 2021, nearly a quarter of women have experienced sexual assault or attempted sexual assault since the age of 16, while one in 14 has experienced rape or attempted rape.
We understand that challenging the police and the state can be difficult. Hudgell Solicitors has a number of experienced lawyers specialising in actions against the police who will assess your case and develop a strategy to put right the state’s failings, offering support and guidance at every stage of the process. You can give us a call, or begin your claim online.
