Detectives have said they are yet to find evidence that an alleged rape outside a church took place as reported or that any immigrants or asylum seekers were involved.
Surrey Police previously received a report that a woman in her 20s had been followed and assaulted outside the church in Ashley Road, Epsom, after leaving Labyrinth Epsom nightclub on Saturday between 2am and 4am.
Surrey Police released an appeal for witnesses but said officers were not issuing any details about the suspects because they did not have ‘sufficient information’.
In response, hundreds of protesters descended on the upmarket town’s centre on Wednesday evening to demand descriptions of anyone involved.
In a statement released today, Assistant Chief Constable for Local Policing Sarah Grahame said: ‘Over the past week, there has been widespread speculation and commentary following a report of a rape in Epsom in the early hours of Saturday.
‘We are aware of the strength of feeling this has created, and of the frustration caused by our limited public comment on the matter.
‘During this time, we have been investigating in depth to establish the sequence of events and to clarify the circumstances surrounding the reported incident. We have reviewed an extensive amount of CCTV footage from the area.
‘We have also been interviewing potential witnesses, carrying out forensics investigations and conducting house-to-house enquiries.
‘To date, we have not found any evidence of the offence as reported but the investigation is ongoing.’
A traffic cone flying in the direction of armed police in Epsom on Wednesday evening as protests broke out in the upmarket Surrey town
Crowds converging on Epsom High Street on Wednesday evening
Turning to rumours that had been circulating locally and on social media, she continued: ‘There has been much speculation about the non-release of a description of any suspects, especially regarding the ethnicity.
‘No descriptions have been released as the information about the incident and potential suspects is so limited. To address the specific commentary, there is no evidence that asylum seekers or immigrants were involved.
‘We appreciate that you want information. We will continue to tell you as much as we can, to engage with you, to reassure you and to address concerns. We ask for space and time to work through the investigation.’
The police chief said there would be an ‘increased police presence’ in Epsom over the weekend.
Yesterday afternoon, around 200 residents gathered inside Epsom Methodist Church for the ‘Hope for Epsom’ service attended by community leaders, police officers and clergy.
Reverend Catherine Hutton began with a message: ‘Today our community gathers to demonstrate our love for the people of Epsom.’
Rev Hutton said the service was a place for people to express ‘our outrage’ at the rape of a young woman.
She added: ‘People of Epsom we are kind. Together we build the future of hopeful Epsom.’
A specially commissioned song of hope was sung before those attending were given the opportunity to lay stones at the front of the church.
Helen Maguire, Lib Dem MP for Epsom and Ewell, had called on the public to ‘let the police do their work’.
‘While I support peaceful protest and understand that members of our community are rightly angry after the appalling assault on a young woman, those who are turning to disruption and intimidation cannot be allowed to do so,’ she said.
‘Behaviour such as damaging police vehicles, blocking key roads, and intimidating officers is completely unacceptable. To those who have come into Epsom from outside our community to spread division and cause disruption: take it elsewhere. It won’t be tolerated here.’
Surrey Police said it put in place a ‘significant’ police presence, including specially trained public order officers, until protesters left at around 8pm
Video posted on social media showed crowds of protesters gathered in Epsom town centre.
Dozens of police officers could be seen wearing helmets and holding shields, with a cone and other objects apparently thrown in their direction.
Surrey Police said it had put in place a ‘significant’ police presence, including specially trained public order officers, until protesters left at around 8pm.
It comes after Merseyside Police was criticised for not revealing the ethnicity of Axel Rudakubana after his arrest in July 2024.
The Southport attacker killed three young girls and injured several more people at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Southport in an incident that rocked the nation.
Within hours of the attack, posts spread on the internet which claimed the suspect was a 17-year-old asylum seeker who had come to the country by boat.
This later emerged to be misinformation, as it was revealed Rudakubana was born in Cardiff to parents from Rwanda.
Last August, the National Police Chief’s Council (NPCC) released interim guidance encouraging police to share the ethnicity and nationality of suspects.
Epsom is the 12th most desirable place to live in England and Wales, according to a 2026 list compiled by Garrington Property Finders, with the average home costing £712,105.
Surrey Police have urged witnesses or anyone with dashcam footage in the area at the time to contact them by quoting reference number PR/45260041426.
