Officers investigating an public indecency offence in the Chapeltown area of Sheffield have released an E-Fit image of a man they would like to identify.

On the 21st of March at around 12.20pm it is reported that a man indecently exposed himself and committed a lewd act near Charlton Brook.

The suspect is described as a white man, about 5ft 9ins tall, of larger build with short dark blonde hair

According to experts on sexual offences flashing is known to lead to greater crimes, especially against women and should be taken more seriously by the police. For example Wayne Couzens, the serving Met police officer who murdered Sarah Everard in 2021, reportedly indecently exposed himself twice in the days before her murder.

Police log over 10,000 exposure cases a year but fewer than 600 ever reach a Court, and in 2020 only 123 offences resulted in immediate custody.

While 1 in 10 women have been subjected to indecent exposure, and more than 113,000 last year, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and Crime Survey for England and Wales.

Dr Fiona Vera-Gray, an assistant professor at the department of sociology at Durham University and expert on sexual violence and harassment, told the Guardian newspaper: “From an early age, women are taught to doubt ourselves and not take exposure seriously.”

“We need to think differently about what the harm is, what it means. Its saying to women: ‘I could hurt you; there is nothing in me to stop me from showing you my penis, it has a threat attached to it… Look at what I could do to you, look at how can humiliate you.’ The ever present present of sexual violence.”

Jane Butler, the chief executive of Rape Crisis, told the Guardian: “Indecent exposure is a sexual offence and causes distress to those who experience it. Sexual assaults of this kind are sometimes viewed as ‘low-level’ sexual offences and this can deter people from reporting it as they don’t believe it will be taken seriously.

“We do see cases where a perpetrator escalates their behaviour and goes on to commit other sexual offences, but in any case we would expect the police to take seriously and investigate any sexual offence reported to them.”

If you can help you can pass information to the Police via live chat, or online reporting systems or by calling 101, Please quote indecent number 424 of 21 March 2024 when you get in touch

You can report online here.