Man in gimp suit terrorises rural village: ‘He was touching his groin, grunting and breathing heavy’

‘Everything was running through my head,’ says victim. ‘I thought: this is it, I’m going to get attacked’

A man said to terrorising a quiet Somerset village while dressed in a gimp suit is being hunted by police.

The rubber-clad assailant – described by one victim as “touching his groin, grunting and breathing heavily” – has jumped out at several men and women late at night, over a number of weeks, in Claverham.

He has caused such alarm that, after the latest incident at 11.30pm on Thursday, officers launched a helicopter and sniffer dog search.

One woman, who managed to take a picture of the man on her phone, said the ordeal has left her afraid to leave home.

She told the BBC: “I don't want to go out. It's not just a man jumping out at me going boo. Every time I close my eyes I just see that face."

Describing the incident, the woman, who asked not to be named but is in her 20s, said: "I was walking along with my torch and looked up to see someone charging at me in a full black rubbery suit and managed to take a picture.

"He kept coming towards me and was touching his groin, grunting and breathing heavy.

"As I tried to take a step back he was right in front of my face and he put his leg forward. I was just trying to assess the situation in my head quickly.

"Everything was running through my head. I thought: 'This is it, I'm going to get attacked'.”

She added that the man had run away when she started to scream.

An spokesperson with Avon and Somerset Police said that they had received other reports of a similar nature.

They said: “While we're keeping an open mind about the motive for these incidents, it's clear the individual responsible is deliberately attempting to cause alarm to the men and women he's approaching.

"While no-one has been hurt during the incidents, we fully appreciate the distress these actions have caused victims."

They asked anyone with information to call police on 101.