£10,000 reward offered for information leading to conviction of rape suspects

A £10,000 reward has been offered by the Sikh community for information leading to the conviction of two men being sought over the “racially motivated” rape of a woman aged in her 20s.

The Sikh Federation UK said the reward was being offered alongside a community poster campaign urging members of the public with dash cam, CCTV and doorbell camera footage to contact West Midlands Police.

A statement issued by the federation said: “The Sikh community has in response now put out its own appeal and put up a reward of £10,000 for information leading to the arrest and successful conviction of the two men involved.

“Sikh media are also carrying the appeal and information about the reward on community television.”

Police inquiries are ongoing into the alleged rape in the Tame Road area of Oldbury, near Birmingham, shortly before 8.30am on Tuesday September 9.

Appealing for witnesses and information at the scene on Thursday, Chief Superintendent Kim Madill, the policing commander for the Sandwell area, said: “This is a key time for people going to work or school and we need your help if you saw anything that may assist our inquiries.

“The victim, a young woman in her 20s, is at the heart of our inquiries and we continue to support her and keep her updated on developments.

“We again appeal to anyone in the area where we are today who may have seen two white men around the time of 8.30am.

“One had a shaved head and a heavy build and was reported to be wearing a dark coloured sweatshirt and had gloves on. The second man was reportedly wearing a grey top with a silver zip.”

Specialist detectives have so far examined hundreds of hours of CCTV and forensic experts are also carrying out extensive inquiries.

Officers arrested a man in his 30s last Sunday on suspicion of rape.

He has been bailed pending further inquiries.