Warning after Soho alley rapes - Falconberg Mews area sealed off by Met Police

Published: 30 April 2010
by JAMIE WELHAM

POLICE have sealed off a Soho alleyway and distributed hundreds of rape alarms after two sex attacks in the same location.

The assaults in Falconberg Mews, off Sutton Row, took place earlier this month and last November. Another alleyway leading through to Charing Cross Road has also been blocked off, and officers have stepped up patrols in the area over fears of further attacks.

Officers have urged women to avoid poorly lit alleyways and not to walk alone at night.

The area around the mews had been turned into a building site because of the ongoing construction work for Crossrail. Both incidents took place outside Knightway House.

Dean Ingledew, Westminster City Council’s operational director for street management, said: “We would urge everyone, but in particular women, to decide on how they are going to get home and indeed the route they will take before they start a night out. We will continue to work with TfL and the police to develop safe routes home through the night and have moved swiftly to make this particular part of Soho safer.

“Taking into account more than 200 million people visit the West End each year, the chances of becoming a victim of crime are very small but we want people to be as safe as possible. Attack alarms cost less than a glass of wine and are easily available online. Carrying one, even if it is just for piece of mind, makes perfect sense.”

A statement from the Metropolitan Police said: “Officers from Westminster Sapphire Unit are investigating both cases which are not believed to be linked.”