Police have stepped up patrols in Great Yarmouth after two teenage girls were allegedly targeted in an attack that led to an arrest in a rape investigation. Officers were called to South Beach Parade shortly after 00:30 BST on Saturday, and a man in his 30s was later arrested in Northamptonshire on Sunday on suspicion of rape.
Norfolk Police said a second suspect is still at large. He is described as white, in his 30s or 40s, with short dark hair and dark facial hair, and was last seen wearing blue jeans and a dark green jacket with a white stripe on both sleeves. The force said the police cordon near Great Yarmouth Pleasure Beach was lifted after inquiries were carried out.
The arrest has brought some movement in a case that still leaves one suspect outstanding. Nick Paling said specialist officers had been deployed to support both girls, while the force also confirmed it was carrying out reassurance patrols in the area.
Paling said police recognised how shocking and distressing the incidents were for the victims, their families and the wider community. That warning landed in a town where the cordon has gone, but the concern has not.
Norfolk Police urged witnesses or anyone with information to come forward as officers continue trying to identify and locate the second suspect. For the girls at the center of the case, and for a community now watching for the next development, the key question is no longer whether police have a lead. It is how quickly they can close the gap on the man they say is still missing.
