Tommi Harwood, 18, was sentenced to five years in prison on Friday, October 9, for raping a teenage girl in the female toilets of Romford station in East London. The attack, which took place on September 5, 2024, was described by police as 'premeditated and frankly abhorrent'.
Attack details revealed in court
Jurors at Snaresbrook Crown Court heard that Harwood, who was 16 at the time, had been messaging the victim on Snapchat and told her his name was Bobby. He learned she was on a train and asked her to meet him at the interchange in Havering. Arriving shortly after 8pm, the girl was led from the platform into a waiting room, where Harwood repeatedly asked her to check if the female toilets were empty. He raped the victim when she went to use the bathroom a short while later.
Harwood then brought her back to the platform and said, "If we see police, run across the tracks". The teenage girl reported what happened, prompting a nearly two-month manhunt by the British Transport Police (BTP).
Arrest and sentencing
Officers eventually arrested Harwood at Basildon station on October 25, 2024, after he was stopped by railway staff for travelling without a valid ticket. The Essex man, of Andersons in Stanford-le-Hope, was found guilty of rape following a five-day trial. In addition to the five-year prison sentence, he was handed an indefinite restraining order and an eight-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO).
BTP Detective Constable Ross McAlpine said: "The young victim has shown tremendous courage, not only by speaking up and reporting what happened to her, but by supporting our enquiries and the court proceedings that followed. She has been supported throughout our investigation by specialist officers, and I hope the fact her attacker is now behind bars brings her some sense of justice."
Police urge reporting of sexual offences
Detective Constable McAlpine added: "Harwood’s attack was premeditated and frankly abhorrent. Through his actions, he has shown that he poses a very real threat to women and girls. Tackling sexual offending is a top priority for us at BTP. I would urge anyone who experiences or witnesses this offending to report it to us by texting 61016 or dialling 999 in an emergency. Just as we have in this case, we’ll stop at nothing to put dangerous sex offenders before the courts."
The sentencing brings a conclusion to a case that highlighted the vulnerability of young people using public transport. BTP has reiterated its commitment to investigating sexual offences and supporting victims throughout the judicial process.
