Man charged with raping a woman at a Wallsend park
A man has appeared in court, charged with raping a women at a park in Wallsend.
At roughly 4pm on Monday 28 March, police attended the Rising Sun Country Park where a 63-year-old woman reported she had been forced to the ground and raped.
An investigation was immediately launched by Northumbria Police's Safeguarding unit and the victim supported by specially-trained officers.
On Saturday 2 April, 34-year-old Alan Anthony Rothwell, of Mowbray Street in Newcastle, appeared in court charged with rape.
Leading the investigation, Detective Chief Inspector Shelley Hudson said:
“I would like to thank the public for their continued cooperation and support. Enquiries are still very much ongoing and we are again asking people to come forward, and are especially interested in anyone who might have footage such as CCTV or dashcam, which could be useful to our investigation.
“Now someone has been charged, we would also ask people to avoid speculation which could impact the case going forward.”
She added: “Thankfully, incidents of this nature are rare, but when they do occur we are committed to supporting and safeguarding victims, and will use every tactic at our disposal to ensure anyone responsible is brought to justice.”
Police are keen to hear from anyone who has CCTV, dashcam or doorbell footage which shows a man in the area of the Rising Sun Country Park between 12pm to 6pm on Monday, matching the following description:
A white male
Late 20s or early 30s
Wearing grey jogging bottoms, black jacket, riding a black peddle bike.
He is between 5ft 6in and 5ft 10in tall
Clean shaven
Of medium build.
Anyone with CCTV that they believe may be useful is asked to upload it to https://mipp.police.uk/operation/10NP22B04-PO1
Anyone with further information which they believe may be useful is also asked to contact police.