Group rape

Report: 10
Date: 8 May 2003
By: Commissioner

Summary

Group rape is defined as ‘A rape or serious indecent assault where two or more persons are present at the time of the offence or have knowledge of the offence prior to the attack’.

Allegations of group rape made to the MPS range from 10 to 90 reports per month with reporting normally peaking in the months of May and July. There is no evidence of a particularly strong trend in the number of allegations recorded although the numbers of group rapes have declined in recent months. This corresponds however with declining reporting rates for rape generally over the same period.

A. Recommendations

That the Committee

1. continues to support the steps being taken by Project Sapphire to improve victim care for rape victims and the investigation of rape; and
2. note the existence of ‘group rape’ and the steps being taken by the MPS to prevent and detect it.

B. Supporting information

1. Group rape is defined as ‘A rape or serious indecent assault where two or more persons are present at the time of the offence or have knowledge of the offence prior to the attack’. The term ‘gang rape’ is no longer used as this can sometimes suggest that rape by more than one individual is committed solely by identifiable criminal ‘gangs’.

Available data on ‘group rape’

2. The primary data source for intelligence on group rape is the Sexual Offences Unit within the Service Intelligence Unit (SIU) who monitor all sexual offences reported in the MPS, analysing trends and carrying out comparative case analysis. The Haven, the MPS Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC), also collates some data. The Haven data is limited to the allegations of the twelve boroughs of south London.

3. There is very little data or analysis of group rape available from external sources in the UK and there has been limited attention paid to this issue in the media. In France, however, a few high profile cases have drawn attention to the issue and received national media coverage. In particular, concerns have been expressed that children’s exposure to pornography is responsible for a surge in cases of teenage group rape.

Analysis on group rape

4. Graph 1 below shows total group rape allegations reported between May 2001 and February 2003 (both stranger and acquaintance). Historically, fewer of these allegations are reported in the winter months and there is usually a seasonal peak in the months of May and July. There is no evidence of a particularly strong trend in the number of allegations recorded although group rapes have declined in recent months. This decline is, however, reflected in the overall data which also shows non-significant trends despite recently declining numbers. The number of reported rapes was significantly low in Feb ’03 compared to the last two years.

Graph 1.

5. Strategic analysis on stranger group rapes was undertaken by the Sexual Offences Unit in SO11 last year after concerns were raised that these allegations appeared to be rising. The analysis examined all allegations committed between January and May 2002. A copy of this report is included at Appendix 1. Group rape allegations (both stranger and acquaintance) continue to be monitored by SO11 as well as boroughs across the MPS for identification of ‘hotspots’ and trends.

Actions being taken on group rape

6. The MPS has been consulting with partners and raising awareness of group rape as an issue in London. Designing a crime prevention initiative on this crime, however, is a complex and challenging prospect and must ensure that the fear of this crime is not raised unduly. Some discussions have taken place with the Home Office on a proposal to create a national Sexual Assault Strategy. It has been suggested that this could include strands that relate to other government departments i.e. Department of Education and Department of Health. The education of young people in relation to acceptable norms of sexual behaviour is a much wider issue than rape and needs to be addressed in the wider context of sex education.

7. Exploratory work is being undertaken with colleagues in France to determine what action is being taken to combat this crime in response to the media attention and public concerns there.

C. Financial implications

There are no direct financial implications emerging from this report as all work is covered by existing budgets. Any exploratory work will be covered by existing budgets

D. Equality and diversity implications

The analysis of stranger group rapes at Appendix 1 highlights disproportionality in ethnicity between victims and suspects (this is an executive summary but the full report is available to members upon request). However, academic research and the British Crime Survey (BCS) (2001) indicate that only one in five rapes are reported to police. It is not possible, therefore, to draw any meaningful conclusions based on the limited data of rapes reported to police.

E. Background papers

• British Crime Survey 2001

F. Contact details

Report author: Detective Chief Inspector Richard Walton, Project Sapphire

For more information contact:

MPA general: 020 7202 0202
Media enquiries: 020 7202 0217/18

Appendix 1: Executive Summary - Key Findings

January to May 2002

• The number of serious stranger group rape offences [1] recorded on CRIS and analysed by the Sexual Offences Section has risen since October 2001.
• Group rape was significantly high in May (18); therefore the decision was made to conduct in-depth analysis to investigate the increase and attempt to highlight emerging problem areas or trends.
• A brief update since the reporting period shows that the number of offences increased to 27 in June (a 35% increase) but decreased to 10 in July (a decrease of 63%).
• From January to May 2002, 70% of victims of group rape were approached by the suspects in an outdoor location.
• During the reporting period, the top six Boroughs were Hackney (GD), Lambeth (LX), Southwark (MD), Brent (QK), Ealing (XD) and Westminster (CW).
• Hackney and Westminster had two group rape offences each that were identified as being similar. The linked offences were within each Borough and there appeared to be no cross-border activity
• Hackney, Lambeth and Brent had the highest proportion of group rapes occurring late at night/early hours of the morning. The majority of these groups were males of African/Caribbean appearance, aged 15 to 21 years.
• In the top six Boroughs, the location of group rapes featuring an ‘outdoor’ approach tended to be near main roads rather than in residential or parkland areas.
• Over half (59%) of victims were of White European ethnic appearance, followed by 28% of victims of African/Caribbean appearance.
• Victims aged 15 to 20 years accounted for 39% of victims.
• Groups made up of African/Caribbean male suspects accounted for 49% of offences. The second largest ethnic group was Indian/Pakistani males, with 13%.
• Males within the age range of 15 to 24 committed over 50% of offences.
• Groups of two, three and four members constituted 48%, 21% and 15% of all offences respectively.
• Violence towards the victim was a feature of 47% of offences, whilst weapons were used or implied in 17%.
• 55% of suspect groups contained members that had been identified and had a previous criminal conviction.
• Of the suspects who were confirmed as having a previous conviction, 64% had a conviction for theft and robbery.
• 54% of identified suspects were involved or were suspected of having involvement in street crime in the last 12 months (37). Of these, 27% were associated with known youth groups.

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