Epsom church rape investigation closed by Surrey Police as 'no offence occurred'

Surrey Police will close their investigation into reports of a rape outside a church in Epsom that led to widespread public disorder, with the force saying that no sexual offence occurred. Police received a report on Saturday April 11 that a woman had been raped near a church in the early hours of the morning after leaving Labyrinth nightclub in Epsom . There was some public anger that the force had not released the ethnicity of any suspects, leading to a number of protests in the town. In an update on Thursday, the force said after a "thorough investigation" it became clear that a woman in her 20s suffered an accidental head injury following a night out, leading her to make a confused report. "At the early stages of this investigation, we issued an appeal for any witnesses or information that could help us progress our enquiries and identify any potential suspects," they said in a statement. "There was a lack of information in our initial appeal particularly regarding potential persons of interest. This was because the descriptions given were vague and limited. "We recognise this caused concern amongst the community. We are now confident that there was no offence, and there were no suspects." Riot police descended on streets in Epsom on Monday night as missiles were thrown after police said there was no evidence immigrants or asylum seekers were involved in the alleged rape. At least two people were detained by police – one for trying to climb on top of a police van and another on the doorstep of a house. That protest followed a demonstration on Wednesday, where objects were thrown at officers as people demanded police release further information about the "suspects". Surrey Police had warned that "robust action" will be taken against anyone who commits a criminal offence in the protest.