Female rider attacked while hacking in Epping Forest
Police in Chingford are investigating an attack on a 25-year-old woman who was riding in Epping Forest yesterday (14 September).
The woman was pulled from her horse by a man as she rode close to the corner of Bury Road and Hornbeam Lane in Chingford at 5.15pm.
It is not known what the man’s aim was but the woman was saved by her horse, which reared up then kicked the man with both hind legs, knocking him to the ground.
She quickly remounted and galloped back to her stable yard.
Police and forest keepers searched the area but the man was not found.
Adrian Liddle of the Epping Forest Riders Association told H&H: “This is quite disturbing as we have not had something like this for a number of years, the last being approximately eight years ago.”
The assailant is described as being a white male, possibly eastern European, with short brown hair and in his late 20s or early 30s.
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He was wearing a white T-shirt and jeans and was taller than 6ft and of muscular build.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Loughton police on 0300 333 4444 and the forest keepers on 020 8532 1010.
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A self-confessed newshound, farmer’s daughter and journalist of many years' experience, Charlotte worked on regional papers before joining H&H in 2007. A regular rider, she visited Ireland in 2010 to investigate the fate of Irish horses through the recession, to much acclaim, and reported from the FEI General Assembly in Rio de Janeiro in 2011. She left Horse & Hound in March 2013.