Officer and colleague were responding to reports of attempted rape in city centre

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

A police officer was allegedly sexually assaulted and beaten as she tried to arrest a man on suspicion of attempted rape.

The officer is recovering at home, as is her colleague who was also injured while making the arrest.

The pair were responding to reports of an attempted rape in Sheffield city centre in the early hours of Friday morning.

The suspect allegedly lashed out at the officers with a wooden “for sale” sign as they tried to detain him and sexually assaulted the female officer.

The chief inspector of South Yorkshire police, Lydia Lynskey, praised the bravery of her officers.



She said: “Our officers potentially face danger every time they respond to an incident, putting themselves in harm’s way to serve and protect the communities of South Yorkshire. The officers who attended on Friday morning were faced with a dangerous and violent situation. However, they showed immense bravery in dealing with the incident.

“Our thoughts are with them and full welfare support has been put in place. We will always take a zero-tolerance approach to assaults on our officers in the course of their duties.”



A 29-year-old man was arrested at the scene on suspicion of attempted rape, assault, sexual assault and criminal damage.