Tuesday night, upon their return from a pub in Cleeve, two young guys claim they were confronted by the Somerset Gimp.
After a few beers to celebrate Mr. Bond’s birthday, Alex Warren, 19, and his friend Charlie Bond say they were approached by a man wearing a PVC bodysuit and a black skintight mask.
The pair reported that the man fell to the ground and began writhing while “saying some demon tongue.”
Multiple people have reported similar experiences in the area since 2018.
Mr. Warren told the Sunday Telegraph, ‘He was wearing latex gloves and was covered in an earthy liquid, as if he had been rolling in fields or submerging himself in septic tanks – he was not impressing anyone.
After a minute or two, he realized that we are two men who had consumed several beers. My friend is 6 feet 9 inches tall and a formidable opponent. After the first shock had subsided, he stood up and took the cigarette.
“I attempted to have a conversation with him, human to human, about what was going on, but he got off.” He picks up the cigarette from the bench and begins to walk away.
In 2019, 2021, and 2022, similar sightings of a person wearing a complete body suit with a face covering were recorded in the nearby communities of Claverham and Yatton.
“I don’t want this individual to be viewed as a bogeyman, but this sort of thing, this threat that he could be anywhere…
It is indirectly instilling terror,’ stated the teen.
It’s not only about the encounter, but also the ripple impact it has on the community. It is quite heartbreaking.
Mr. Warren stated that he phoned police following the incident.
Officers, accompanied by a dog unit and a police helicopter, rushed to the location and conducted a search. A man in his 30s was detained at a local residence on suspicion of creating a public nuisance.
Since his release on bond, he is subject to a nighttime curfew and is not permitted to leave his residence between 9pm and 6am.
Acting Inspector Lee Kerslake of the neighborhood policing team stated, ‘We responded immediately to this report because it was comparable to other past events that generated great fear and anxiety among the general people.
“No one was physically injured during any of these instances, but we are aware that they have generated anxiety in the local community, and we are determined to discover the person or persons involved and bring them to justice.
We continue to have an open mind on the intentions of the individual on Millier Road and the possibility of a connection to earlier incidents.
To reassure the neighborhood, additional patrols will be conducted in the area, and anyone with concerns regarding this or any other event is encouraged to talk with an officer.
“Anyone who noticed a man acting suspiciously in the Cleeve, Claverham, or Yatton areas on Monday night or Tuesday morning, or who has CCTV, doorbell, or dashcam footage that could aid our investigation, is asked to contact us.”
Kiera Elston, 19, and her boyfriend, Lewis Webb, spotted a masked man in a gimp suit while going home in the village of Yatton at approximately 1:00 a.m. on June 26.
Kiera describes the weird figure as “proud” with his arms outstretched. The two were horrified by the eerie incident and raced away to avoid him.
After the incident, she told the Daily Star, ‘It was the most horrific experience of my life’
“I had a mental vision of him approaching me while staring. I shudder to consider what would have transpired if I had been on my own. I am still rather rattled by it.
Her boyfriend Lewis was also concerned, remarking that they were fortunate to be together at the time.
West Country villages have been “terrorized” by a “gimp guy” for the past few years.
There have been suspected sightings of the man in Claverham in 2018 and 2019, with police searches yielding negative results. Two individuals were detained and then released without charge.
One person who was targeted in July 2019 was able to obtain a photograph of the alleged ‘gimp man’, depicting him wearing an all-black latex costume and a full-face mask.