Police release image of double rape suspect as manhunt continues

Do you know this man?

Metropolitan Police have released the first picture of the man they suspect of abducting and raping two women. Officers said the man has a distinctive tattoo across his stomach of the name "Bobbie" and have released CCTV images of the suspect as he attempted to book a hotel in Watford on the afternoon of Thursday April 25. Another man, 33, has been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to rape and is in custody in a west London police station. A manhunt is underway to find the other suspect. A Scotland Yard statement said "the hunt for the rapist continues." The suspect is described as a white man of muscular build, aged in his late 20s or early 30s, with a bald head or shaved blonde hair and a light-coloured short beard. The car he was driving is believed to be a silver or grey-coloured Ford S-Max people carrier, with false registration plates. The first woman was abducted from a street in Chingford at 12.30am on April 25 and the second woman taken from a street in Edgware 12 hours later, at 12.15pm. The suspect drove the women to the hotel and attempted to book a room at 1pm. When this was unavailable, he left the premises. At 2.30pm a struggle between the women and the suspect took place in Osborne Road, Watford and the women managed to escape. Detective chief inspector Katherine Goodwin said: "Our investigation into these appalling crimes is making good process and my team continue to work extremely hard but we urgently need the help of the public to identify and trace this man. "I would ask everyone to take a good look at his image – does this man look familiar? Do you know anyone with the name ‘Bobbie’ tattooed on his stomach? Did you see a man matching this description in and around the Chingford or Edgware areas on Thursday, April 25? "We believe he travelled around north London and Hertfordshire in his car from the early hours of Thursday and he may have come into contact with other members of the public. "Equally he may have abandoned his car somewhere - if an unfamiliar car of this description is now parked on your street, call police straight away. "We would ask anyone with any information to contact us immediately – if you see the suspect do not approach him but call 999 immediately. If you wish to remain anonymous, call Crimestoppers. It is vitally important we catch this man, and while stranger attacks of this nature are thankfully rare, we would urge people to remain vigilant."

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Anyone who can help is asked to call the incident room on 0208 785 8244 or 999 quoting CAD 3041/25Apr, or tweet @MetCC and or Crimestoppers anonymously via 0800 555 111.