A man has been arrested on suspicion of raping a pensioner in her own home.
The woman, who is in her 70s, was attacked just before 8am in Wednesday after a man forced his way into her home in Russell Hill Road, Purley.
The victim had noticed the man at her front door, and when she opened it he used his foot to force the door open before barging into her house.
A man has been arrested after a pensioner was in her home.
The woman, who is in her 70s, was attacked just before 8am in Wednesday after a man forced his way into her home in Purley.
The victim had noticed the man at her front door, and when she opened it he used his foot to force the door open and barge into her house.
He then assaulted and raped her. His victim suffered bruising to her face.
The attacker fled after the attack as the elderly woman called the emergency services.
A 46-year-old man was arrested last night on suspicion of rape and this morning he was being held at a south London police station.
Detectives from the Met's Sexual Offences, Exploitation and Child Abuse Command are continuing to investigate the incident
The woman described her attacker as a white man who was about 5ft 8ins tall with short brown hair. He spoke with what was possibly a Scottish accent and had a tattoo or a mark on his neck and a tattoo on the left side of his chest, which was described as circular.
Detective Inspector Keith Ward said: "Specially trained detectives have been deployed and are supporting the woman whilst she continues to bravely provide the investigation with vital information.
"Detectives are working around the clock and are carrying out door-to-door enquiries, gathering CCTV and speaking to anyone who was in the area at the time, to see if they saw or heard anything suspicious.
"We are totally alive to the fact that an incident like this will cause alarm to people living in the area, and I would like to provide as much reassurance as I can that detectives are doing everything we can to arrest the suspect.
"We ask that anyone who recognises the suspect description contact us as a matter of urgency.
"For anyone worried about doing this, I would reassure them that they will be treated with the utmost sensitivity and there are ways and means that innocent people put to us can be eliminated from our enquiries."
Police are asking anyone with information to call them on 020 8721 4106; or to remain anonymous, call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
