A 24-year old Indian man has been sentenced life imprisonment after an investigation into attempted rape and rape of a child in London. The man, Navroop Singh, was jailed following a police investigation that Scotland Yard called "significant". Singh was sentenced with a minimum term of 14 years for five charges including of rape at Isleworth Crown Court.
Navroop Singh had pleaded guilty to three offences including the possession of an imitation firearm with intent to commit offence, rape of a minor girl under 13 and assault of a girl under 13 by penetration . In October last year he was convicted of an attempted rape of a women in west London following a four day court trial at Isleworth Crown Court.
Talking about the incident, Acting Chief Superintendent Sean Lynch applauded the courage of the victims and their families for their unwavering bravery and strength in reporting incident.
He also said, “Today’s conviction is testament to the officers’ thorough investigation, which has identified a violent sexual offender and undoubtedly prevented further harm.” Sean Lynch along with his team launched an investigation and tracked down Singh using forensics, CCTV records and witness statements to build evidence against him.
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Investigations began in October last year
{{/usCountry}}Also read: Indian man in Argentina travels 400 km to say ‘Hello’ to PM Modi: ‘I shook his hand’
Investigations began in October last year
{{/usCountry}}An investigation was launched in October last year, after the reports of an attempted rape of a woman in her 20’s. The victim approached the police who by chance were off duty new the gates of Southall Park in Ealing, west London. The police officers then accompanied her to the nearest station.
Navroop Singh was sitting on a park bench that day during the early hours, waiting for a potential victim. He used an imitation firearm, assembled by him, to threaten the victim while he attempted to rape her.
After the report was filed, officers went through hours of CCTV footage and tried to identify the offender. While the investigations were still going, a child was raped at a different park which led the police to realise a link between the two offenses. “Using the increased resources which were made available, officers secured additional forensic evidence and traced the offender to within a few doors of his home address where they delivered leaflets to appeal for witnesses and carried out increased patrols of the area,” the Met Police said.
The Met Police also said that for them, tacking violence against women and girls are a priority and they are working relentlessly to pursue the city’s most dangerous predators who often commit other crimes.
(With inputs from PTI)