Sex attack on campus

Police appeal for witnesses after alleged afternoon assault in Parkinson toilets

Police are appealing for witnesses after a male student was the victim of a alleged serious sexual assault on campus.

A 21-year-old male student was reportedly attacked in the basement toilets of the Parkinson building between the hours of 1pm and 3pm on February 19.

The University has moved to reassure its students that their welfare is of utmost importance. “We were saddened and shocked to hear about the alleged sexual assault in Parkinson building reported last week,” a University spokesperson said. “These incidents are, fortunately, very rare and it is the first incident of its type ever reported on campus.”

The incident occurs in the wake of several Leeds Student investigations into the Parkinson’s toilets, a known hotspot for males cruising for sex.

In 2007 patrols in the Parkinson building were stepped up as a result of this paper’s articles into anonymous sex cruising, or ‘cottaging’ in the same facilities.The University explained that campus safety measures would again be examined in light of this particluar incident.

‘Cottaging’ refers to homosexual encounters in public lavatories, often arranged anonymously through Internet sites.As early as 2005, Leeds Student revealed that in the Parkinson basement toilets “men would meet up for regular lunchtime liaisons and use the self-drilled spy-holes to peer at others.”

The sexuality of the attacker in the alleged assault is, as yet, unknown.

An investigation of Squirt.org, a website where ‘cruisers’ can agree to meet up, revealed the popularity of the Parkinson as a cottaging venue. One site member described a recent visit to the toilets: “Sat after noon was great here. Loads of guys to chose (sic) from.”

Postings regarding the toilets were still being made in the days leading up to the recently alleged attack, with one appearing just seven hours earlier.The message, posted at 6.19am on Thursday February 19 asked: “Who goin 2 day”, while another posted the day before read: “Anyone about 2m, 4ish?”

The website has since warned members to remain vigilant. The post by Ed, the Squirt Editor, told members to continue to “cruise carefully” and also warned them to beware of attention from media and police at other local sites.Another member warned fellow cruisers to be wary after he, “Popped in here today around 12pm and noticed some CID officers having a good look around this place, so beware guys, they are on the prowl.”

The website details directions to the Parkinson building, including bus routes and nearest car parks. It claims that the best time to be there is “In the afternoon” as there are “lots of horny students ready to work off that tension.” There are 100 comments about the location, and it receives a 4 star rating.

Steve Smith, the writer of both articles on cottaging in the Parkinson toilets commented: “We exposed the Parkinson toilets as a popular location for cottagers across the city in 2005 and again highlighted the dangers of continuing activities in 2007.

“For the University not to have stamped this out in three and a half years is little short of negligent and shows a complete disregard for the welfare of students.”

Steve continued: “Usually cottaging is a paranoid and subtle activity that is far from aggressive, yet I'm not shocked that a sexual attack has taken place. Any location open to the public where these acts are left unchecked, welcomes a range of possible dangers.

Matthew Edwards, LGBT events and promotions officer, called for a thorough and sensitive investigation into the assault:
“The LGBT Society is very concerned about the attacks in Parkinson basement toilets. The issue needs to be dealt with in a mature and delicate way that protects users of the toilets without discriminating against any potential users.”

The University said that campus safety measures would be examined: “The safety of our students, staff and visitors is paramount and we are looking at how any further incidents can be prevented, including increasing the number of CCTV cameras and the number of security patrols."

“If anyone does feel uncomfortable about an approach or the behaviour of others then they should report this to University security on their emergency number 0113 343 2222.”

Information about personal safety is available at www.luuonline.com or students can contact the Student Advice Centre.Anyone who was in the area at the time or anyone with any information is asked to contact North West Leeds CID on 0845 6060606.

Posted in Issue 15 - LS1 > News on Friday 6th March, 2009