A police cordon has been put in place after a woman was allegedly raped in Witham in the early hours of this morning.

Police received a call at around 12.15am today, Saturday, July 21, with reports that a woman had been attacked near River Walk in the town.

The incident is believed to have happened around 20 minutes before the call was made.

Police are advising residents that they can expect to see a cordon in place in Armond Road and River Walk for the remainder of the day.

There will also be an increased police presence in Witham to provide reassurance to residents and further the investigation.

No arrests have yet been made.

The victim has been safeguarded and is being supported by specialist officers.

Detective Chief Inspector Greg Wood said: “We are in the very early stages of our enquiries and would like to ask that any information which could help us is passed to our team of detectives as soon as possible.

“This incident will clearly cause alarm and concern among residents.

“I have a dedicated team of detectives working exclusively on this investigation and we will do everything we can to support the victim and try to identify who is responsible for this attack.

“We would like to reassure the community that as soon as we have further details about the circumstances of the incident, we will share these.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact Essex Police on 101, quoting incident 17 of 21/07/2018. People can also call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.