Appeal to identify rape suspect

The rape suspect had a gold hooped earring in his left ear

Police have asked for help to identify a man who raped a 16-year-old girl on a secluded footpath in Surrey.

Police in the county have released an e-fit image of the suspect in the attack, which took place in Ash on Monday afternoon.

He approached his victim from behind as she walked across common land on her way from Aldershot, Hampshire, to Ash.

The man, aged between 20 and 25, is believed to be foreign and he had a distinctive scar on his right cheek.

The attack just after 1600 BST led to extra police patrols being deployed around the A331 Blackwater Valley Route.

Tanned appearance

The area where the rape happened was said to be used as a short cut by people accessing a footbridge over the A331 into Shawfield Lane in Ash.

Police said the man ran off in that direction.

He was thought to be a foreign national because of his limited English.

He was described as between 5ft 5in (1.65m) and 5ft 6in (1.67m) tall, of a slim and skinny build, and with short dark hair and brown eyes.

He had a tanned appearance, and a 1.5in (3.8cm) scar on his right cheek which police said was probably fairly old as it was lighter in colour than his olive skin.

He was wearing black clothes and footwear, including a T-shirt which had a white circular motif on the front and white writing which appeared to be peeling off.

Det Insp John Cable said: "This man may have been in the area some hours before the attack happened, or even in the days running up to it."