Indian-origin man gets life sentence for raping child in UK

A 24-year-old Indian-origin man, Navroop Singh, has been sentenced to life imprisonment in London for attempting to rape a woman and for raping a child in two separate attacks. Singh first attempted to rape a 20-year-old woman in Southall Park, located in the Ealing district. While investigations into that assault were ongoing, he went on to rape a child at another park on October 23, 2024.

Singh was sentenced to life imprisonment on Friday with a minimum term of 14 years for five charges, including rape, at Isleworth Crown Court, London's Metropolitan Police said in a statement.

Earlier, he had pleaded guilty to three offences: possession of an imitation firearm with intent to commit an indictable offence, rape of a girl under 13, and assault of a girl under 13 by penetration.

SINGH HAD WAITED FOR THE WOMAN TO COME

Singh had been sitting on a bench in the park during the early hours of October 13, 2024, where he waited for the survivor to walk past. He was carrying an imitation firearm, which he had ordered and assembled himself, and used it to threaten the survivor while he attempted to rape her, according to the police.

In the days following the report, officers trawled through hours of CCTV footage to try and identify an offender.

With the investigation ongoing, a child was raped at a different park on October 23, 2024. Officers immediately made a link between the offences.

"Using the increased resources which were made available, officers secured additional forensic evidence. Officers were able to trace 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 Metropolitan Police said.

Singh was arrested on October 27 last year, with each of the survivors supported by specialist officers throughout the investigation and court process.

POLICE CHIEF HEAPS PRAISE SURVIVORS AND THEIR FAMILIES

Acting Chief Superintendent of the Metropolitan Police, Sean Lynch, praised survivors' courage and families' support in bringing the predator to justice.

"I would like to commend the strength of the victim-survivors and their families, and thank them for their unwavering bravery in reporting these awful incidents to us," the statement, issued last week, quoted Lynch as saying.

"Today's conviction is testament to the officers' thorough investigation, which has identified a violent sexual offender and undoubtedly prevented further harm," the top officer added.

The probe was launched by his team following reports of an attempted rape of the woman on October 13, 2024. They tracked down the culprit using forensics, CCTV and witness accounts to build a file of evidence against him.

"Police were alerted by the victim, who, by chance, was met by two off-duty officers near to the gates of the park who accompanied her to the nearest police station (sic)," the statement read.

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