Man arrested in The Vines park rape investigation in Rochester
10:06, 18 May 2022
updated: 12:10, 09 June 2022
A 21-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of raping a woman in a park.
Officers are searching The Vines in Rochester as part of an ongoing investigation into the incident.
The offence is reported to have been committed against a woman during the early hours of Sunday and specialist officers are providing her with ongoing support.
A 21-year-old man has also been arrested on suspicion of rape. He was later released on bail, which has since been extended until June 21.
The entrance to the park was taped off by police at around 8pm last night.
One police car and a van were spotted at the entrance near Vines Lane and a cordon was still in place until around midday today.
Crow Lane resident Jade Jones, 23, was alerted to the police presence outside her home opposite the park last night.
The mum-of-two said: "This morning when I came back from the school run there were police officers in a line on their hands and knees searching through the grass.
"I had a police officer knock on my door asking me for CCTV and they said there was an incident that happened over the weekend."
Ms Jones added there is often anti-social behaviour at this time and she had installed cameras after a string of unsavoury incidents, including the attempted theft of her partner's bike.
In 2019 the park was similarly cordoned off by police after a woman was raped.