Leeds man raped at Oktoberfest beer festival in Germany

A man thought to be from Leeds has been raped at the famous Oktoberfest beer festival in Munich.
The annual festival attracts huge crowdsThe annual festival attracts huge crowds
The annual festival attracts huge crowds

The 24-year-old, who has not been named, was attacked by two men when he went to urinate in bushes at the edge of the festival area.

According to German police he was forced to the ground and assaulted after rejecting the advances of one of the men.

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The two attackers then fled. Police are still searching for clues as to their identity.

A Foreign and Commonwealth Office spokesman said: “We aware of an incident involving a British national and we are providing consular assistance.”

The incident, which happened at about 9.30pm on Saturday, took place at the edges of the Theresienwiese, a large open space on the outskirts of Munich where Oktoberfest is held each year.

Most of the area is taken up with brightly lit beer tents and huge crowds of festival-goers, but there are dark and quiet areas at the fringes.

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Toilets are a frequent issue, with large quantities of beer being consumed, and in 2004 queues became so long police had to be called in to control them. It is not unusual for festival-goers to try to find a secluded spot to relieve themselves.

The attack on the Briton comes just days after a woman on her way home from the festival was assaulted by a 16-year-old boy, who tore some of her clothes and attempted to molest her.

Passers by heard her cries for help and came to her aid before he could rape her.

Elsewhere, a 27-year-old Italian was held after trying to attack a 20-year-old man with a bread knife.

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An American soldier was also taken into custody for rampaging through one of the marquees. On his way to the Oktoberfest’s temporary police station he started screaming ‘Nazis’ at the security guards. He then bit a police officer on the left arm.

Despite the incidents, Munich police say crime, including sexual assaults, is down at this year’s Oktoberfest compared to previous years.

So far there have been seven sexual assaults this year, including two rapes, compared to twelve last year.

Overall there have been 659 crimes reported in the first week of Oktoberfest, compared to 831 last year.

As of Saturday night, 3.3million people have visited the Oktoberfest so far this year.