British Transport Police (BTP) Detective Superintendent Sam Blackburn made an appeal to the public on Crimewatch Live this morning (18 March) after a woman came forward to report a harrowing ordeal in which she was raped at a railway station in Nottinghamshire 37 years ago.
The woman, who is now in her 50s and living abroad, was 16 years old at the time of the offence. She reported the incident in September 2025, and an investigation was launched immediately by detectives from BTP’s Major, Serious and Organised Crime (MSOC) team.
The victim was on her way to a relatives’ house in Hull at around 5.30pm on a Friday evening in December 1987. She got on a train at Stevenage towards Doncaster when the train stopped at Newark Northgate station in Nottinghamshire and all passengers were told to get off. She remembers an announcement that there would be a two-hour delay for the next train due to snowy conditions in the north.
As she stood on the platform a group of young men approached and stood near her. One of the men – who we will refer to as Man 2 – vocally complained about the delay before telling the victim she should go to a nearby pub with them. Thinking it would be safer than standing on the platform on her own, she reluctantly decided to go.
At the pub Man 2 was very talkative and told the victim he and his group were soldiers in the British Army. He bought the victim a coke, which she recalled tasted funny, and he encouraged her to drink it before quickly buying her another.
The victim next remembered being back at Newark Northgate station, and her feet dragging along the ground as the men supported her along the platform. She described lifting her head and seeing several other passengers looking in her direction.
The men took her down the platform and lowered the victim onto the tracks. She remembers them jeering and shouting another man from the group – Man 1 – raped her.
After the attack she was pulled back up onto the platform by Man 2 and then recalls being back on the train, crammed between the men in the train’s vestibule, when she was pushed into a toilet and Man 1 raped her again.
When the train pulled into Doncaster station, Man 2 insisted the victim had to stay with them, but she saw a chance to escape and told him she needed to check the train timetable for her connection.
She saw her train to Hull and boarded, sitting in between lots of people to obscure herself. She remembers looking out the window and seeing Man 2 on the platform frantically trying to spot her. A man sat opposite looked at her quizzically, and then at Man 2 on the platform. The train then pulled out of the station, and she was finally away from the men.
Detective Superintendent Sam Blackburn is leading the investigation. He said: “This courageous woman has lived with this ordeal for most of her life, and we are doing everything we possibly can to try to achieve justice for her.
“Her now living aboard and the passage of time, however many years have passed, is not a barrier to justice. From the victim’s report there were many people who saw what happened to her at Newark Northgate station that Friday night, and I would be keen to hear from those people.
“Even more important though, is that her attacker and his group claimed to be members of the British Army. They all had crew cuts and canvas bags and there were around six of them in total, including Man 1 and Man 2. Some stood and watched, and no one at all intervened.
“The victim was only a child. Were you there? Has this been on your conscience for all these years? Can you do the right thing now and come forward with what you know?
“Alternatively, were you in the British Army at the time and did you hear about this incident through the grapevine? Do you know the men responsible, and can you tell us their names? Any fragment of information, no matter how small, can help us.”
Anyone who has information that could help police should text BTP on 61016, or call 0800 40 50 40, using the reference 2500106894.
