'Police only took me seriously after my TikTok post'
BBCA woman who was threatened with rape by a group of teenage boys and young men has said she was "heavily disappointed" after police initially took no action.
Saskia Ponting said she was verbally abused and followed by the group as she walked through Cheltenham town centre on 28 May.
She made a report to Gloucestershire Police about the incident that evening but three days later was told the case would be closed.
After posting a TikTok video about her experiences on 1 June, police contacted her to ask for permission to launch a public appeal. Gloucestershire Police said a "mistake" had been made and agreed the case should have been taken further when it was first reported.
Ponting said that the escalation of the police investigation was "100%" due to her speaking out on social media and that officers explicitly told her this.
"The police definitely should have reached out earlier," she said.
"I would have also appreciated more empathy from them and less victim blaming."
She added that while the abuse and threats she received from the group was verbal, it put her in fear of what might happen next.
"It was them talking to one another about how I would be perfect for that [rape] and then with them following me, it just felt like something really bad was going to happen," she said.
Ponting also criticised what she felt was a lack of clarity about how cases are handled.
"The officer I spoke to told me I'd done everything I was supposed to do in that situation, but at the same time I was penalised for not being able to provide an exact suspect profile from memory," she said.
Gloucestershire Police said a "mistake" had been made and agreed the case should have been taken further when it was first reported.
Det Ch Supt Kerry Paterson said incidents are assessed according to "threat, harm and risk", as well as potential lines of inquiry.
"If there are lines of inquiry, it should then be allocated to an officer to investigate.
"Unfortunately, on this occasion, that's not what happened and it was closed by an officer prematurely."
She added: "Obviously listening to Saskia's TikTok video and talking about her distress and experience, I can understand how she feels let down."
A full investigation into Ponting's case is now under way. CCTV footage along the route she took is being examined and more police patrols are being mounted in the area.
The group are described as being white, aged between 16 and 18 or possibly older, with brown hair, and being about 5ft 8ins (1.72m) in height.
They were all wearing tracksuits and some of them were riding bikes, police added.
Officers have also appealed to businesses in the area to share any relevant CCTV, and said they want to hear from any other women who may have been targeted by the group.
Victims who have experienced any form of harassment, sexual violence or threats are also being encouraged to tell police.
"It's really, really important to us, whatever the level of the intimidation or harassment, for people to come forward and report it," Paterson said.
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