Hunt for three men after woman raped in a 'despicable assault'

A 22-YEAR-OLD woman was forced into a lane by three men and raped in what police described as a "despicable assault".

The woman was walking along Bowman Street towards Victoria Road in Govanhill in the south side of Glasgow at about 10:45pm on Monday when she was approached by the trio.

She was pushed into Kingarth Lane, which runs between blocks of tenements, where she was raped by one man and indecently assaulted by the others.

The men were described as being of eastern European appearance and aged between 15 and early-40s. The attack was only stopped when the men were disturbed by a passer-by walking a dog.

Their young victim was left "deeply distressed" by the ordeal, Strathclyde Police said. Detective Sergeant Craig Warren, said: "Inquiries are ongoing to trace the men responsible for this incident. This was a despicable attack on a lone female and these men need to be found.

"From the inquires we have already carried out, I am aware that the suspects were disturbed by a passer-by walking a dog and that the woman got a taxi from Victoria Road after the attack.

"We are keen to speak with both of these people as I believe they may have vital information in relation to this incident."

Det Sgt Warren said the victim had looked up and heard the passer-by shout something that may have stopped the attack. The passer-by was described as being elderly with grey hair.

Police have increased high-visibility patrols and drafted plain-clothes officers into the area. Door-to-door inquiries were also continuing yesterday.

One of the suspects was 5ft 6in, of heavy build, in his late-30s to early-40s, with short, shaven hair, brown eyes, stubble and a round head.

He was wearing a sleeveless dark top with a football logo on it - possibly with the word ITALIA on it - dark coloured three-quarter length trousers and trainers. He smelt of body odour, stale drink and smoke.

The second man was about 6ft, of thin build and with a distinctive thin, chin-line beard. He was wearing dark-blue jeans with baggy pockets, a grey long-sleeved top and black trainers, which had multiple stripes running from the laces to the sole.

The third man was 5ft 6ins, aged 15 to 18, with gelled spiky hair.

He was wearing a square shiny earring in his left ear and a white top with long sleeves.

Det Sgt Warren added: "The description given by the woman includes some very distinct details, someone out there must recognise these people.

"I would ask anyone who recognises any of these suspects to come forward and help us solve this crime."