Six men charged with a string of rapes and sex offences in Brighton after police investigations revealed several women had been assaulted on pier and beach

Six men have been charged over a series of rapes and assaults at one of Britain’s most famous holiday beaches, after six women reported being attacked on the beach and pier within a month.

Sussex Police tracked them down and arrested them in connection with reports of women being raped or sexually assaulted around Brighton beach.

Detectives had been trying to find them as part of their investigation into the incidents, which took place in September.

Chief Inspector Adele Tucknott, Sussex Police’s lead officer for violence against women and girls, said: ‘Each of these horrific incidents was treated with the seriousness they demanded, with hundreds of hours spent on painstaking investigations to identify and locate suspects.

‘In addition to these investigations, each victim received support from specialist officers and our partners during this extremely difficult time.

“Each of these charges should send a clear message to anyone who wishes to harm women and girls in Brighton and Hove that we will do everything we can to bring the perpetrators to justice.

‘The work to prevent incidents like this continues with our partners, with extra patrols, a drone monitoring hard-to-reach areas such as the beach and a range of other safety measures to reduce vulnerability and keep Brighton a safe place for a night out. .’

The separate investigations were handled by four operations, Sussex Police said, and the arrested men will appear in court in the coming months.

Operation Lindwood investigated two separate attacks, the first of which occurred on Wednesday 6 September.

Police received a report that a young woman had been raped on the beach at Brighton Pier shortly after midnight.

Two days later, officers were called to London Road in the early hours to a report that a woman in her 20s had been sexually assaulted at around 3.15am.

Ahmed Lahmatar, 36, of no fixed abode, has been charged with rape and attempted rape and has been remanded in custody.

He will have to appear for a court appearance on March 4, 2024, which will be confirmed.

A second investigation, Operation Carpenter, was launched after police were called to the beach at the Kings Road Arches at around 5.35am on September 10 by a member of the public concerned for the welfare of a woman in her 30s.

Ali Reza Mozaffari, 36, from Brent Cross, London, has been charged with rape and remanded in custody.

Isaac Cid-Lopez, 22, from Walthamstow, London, has been charged with rape and robbery. He has been released on bail under strict conditions.

Both will appear in court on February 26.

In the early hours of Saturday, September 16, police received a report that a woman in her 20s had been raped on the beach.

Following investigations as part of Operation Embassy, ​​a 31-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of rape and possession of a class B drug: cannabis. He has been remanded in custody in connection with another case.

Early on the morning of September 24, a woman reported that she had been raped on the seafront at Brighton Pier, and that another woman had been sexually assaulted nearby.

Altaib Hamed, 25, from Brighton, has now been charged with rape and remanded in custody.

Bader Saleh, 23, from Brighton, has been charged with assault and remanded in custody.

Both will appear in court on December 18 for confirmation.