ALAN BROOKS FROM ROMFORD AND TOWER HAMLETS JAILED FOR KNIFE ATTACK ON SCHOOLGIRL

On November 2, 1992, a disturbing case unfolded involving Alan Brooks, a man with connections to both Romford and Tower Hamlets, who was sentenced to five years in prison for a brutal and terrifying sexual assault carried out at knifepoint against a young schoolgirl.

According to court reports, Brooks, aged 49 and residing on Mawney Road in Romford, Essex, was found guilty of kidnapping and indecent assault that took place on the August Bank Holiday Monday, August 26 of the previous year. The incident occurred at a bus stop in Leytonstone, where the 16-year-old victim was waiting alone for her friends. Disguised with sunglasses, a baseball cap, and a duster wrapped around his face to conceal his identity, Brooks approached her wielding a carving knife.

He forcibly dragged the girl into nearby bushes, where he pressed the weapon against her throat and later against her body, instilling a profound sense of fear and helplessness. During this ordeal, Brooks removed her trousers and knickers before subjecting her to an indecent assault. The court was told that the girl was terrified and struggled to escape, but Brooks flung her to the ground and made disturbing sexual advances.

Witnesses and the victim’s friends, who arrived on a bus shortly after the attack, saw her in distress and rushed to her aid. Brooks attempted to flee the scene but was quickly pursued by some of the young witnesses and police officers. He was eventually apprehended in Aldersbrook Road. During police interviews at Ilford Police Station, Brooks initially denied the allegations. However, forensic evidence, including clothing recovered from the scene, strongly implicated him, leading to his guilty plea at the last minute.

Brooks’s criminal history includes a previous conviction from 20 years prior, when he was convicted of having an offensive weapon and indecent assault. In that earlier case, he held a woman at knifepoint, took her to his car, and assaulted her. Additionally, in 1989, he was fined by magistrates after being arrested in woods near nurses’ accommodation at Whipps Cross Hospital, Leyton, armed with a Jiff lemon bottle containing ammonia. The court judge, Geoffrey Rucker, questioned whether these incidents were coincidental or indicative of a pattern of behavior.

During sentencing, Judge Rucker emphasized the severity of Brooks’s actions, stating, “You held that knife to her throat and later to her body. It goes without saying that she was very, very frightened. When she tried to escape, you flung her to the ground and made repellant sexual advances.” The judge acknowledged Brooks’s family hardships but underscored the importance of deterring such behavior in society.

Brooks was sentenced to five years in prison, with each of the charges he admitted being served concurrently. Throughout the proceedings, he showed no emotion and glanced at his well-dressed wife sitting in the courtroom gallery as he was led away to begin his sentence. The court’s verdict underscores the serious nature of his crimes and the ongoing concern about public safety in the areas of Romford and Tower Hamlets.