London’s Metropolitan Police Force has recommended young women travelling alone at night in the West of the city exercise particular care after a series of attacks against lone women, incidents that are thought to be linked.

The warning comes after three incidents where women travelling alone at night in the Clapham and Putney area were picked up by a car that may have been masquerading as a minicab. Once inside the cars, the women were assaulted by the driver.

Detective Inspector Joanne Flynn, of the South West Command Unit’s CID, said: “We are following a number of lines of enquiry, however, it is important that we make women aware that this predatory man is out there.

“Although none of the victims sustained serious injuries, they were, understandably, traumatised by the incidents.

“The vehicle may or may not be a genuine minicab. Please ensure that you only get into cabs that you have personally booked and if possible, don’t travel home alone.”

The Metropolitan Police urged those with information to call police on 101, quoting 0318262/19, or to call anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Crime, including violent crime against the person and sexual assault and rapes are all up in London, having shown a particular increase over the period of the mayoralty of Labour’s Sadiq Khan. Breitbart London reported in May on the third anniversary of Mr Khan becoming mayor on the extent of that increase in criminality, where statistical analysis showed knife crime had risen by 52 per cent, robbery by 59 per cent, and gun crime by 30 per cent.

In 2018, sex crimes were reported to have risen by 20 per cent in the city, but police reported they did not understand why the figure was rising.

Perhaps the most notorious taxi-cab attacker in British history, John Worboys was jailed in 2009 after drugging then sexually assaulting 16 women he picked up in his cab. While he was given an “indefinite sentence”, he was prepared for release in 2018, but public outcry and a judicial review saw a subsequent announcement that he would remain in prison.

One of Worboys’ victims was a then-19-year-old student Carrie Symonds, now the girlfriend of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and resident at Downing Street, the prime minister’s official residence.