Tommi Harwood

A teenager who raped a 16-year-old girl in the women’s toilets at Romford railway station has been jailed for five years.

Tommi Harwood, 18, from Stanford-le-Hope, Essex, arranged to meet the girl through Snapchat, introducing himself as “Bobby”.

Harwood was 16 when he carried out the attack on 5 September 2024. After meeting the girl on the platform, he led her into a waiting room and then the women’s toilets, where he violently raped her.

Afterwards, he told her to run away if police arrived.

Officers initially struggled to locate Harwood. He was eventually arrested at Basildon station on 25 October 2024, after being stopped for travelling without a valid ticket.

British Transport Police’s Major, Serious and Organised Crime team built the case using the survivor’s detailed account, forensic evidence and CCTV footage. The Crown Prosecution Service authorised a rape charge.

Following a five-day trial, Harwood was convicted of rape and sentenced at Snaresbrook Crown Court on 9 October.

Alongside his five-year prison term, he received an indefinite restraining order and an eight-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

Source: UK Database on Facebook