‘Somerset Gimp’ arrested again for terrifying motorist who thought he was a badger

The mysterious gimp during one of his evening prowls. Photo / Avon and Somerset Police

A rubber-clad gimp terrorising villages in England’s West Country struck again over the Bank Holiday weekend leaving a woman travelling alone in her car terrified.

Seven months after his last sighting, the so-called “Somerset Gimp” resurfaced on Sunday evening when he leapt out in front of a passing motorist and began “crawling and writhing” on the ground.

Lucy Anne had been driving along a backroad between Weston-on-Mare and Brean, when she encountered the man dressed from head to toe in black latex.

Anne said she had initially believed the figure, who wore a mask with two white crosses on his eyes, was a badger.

After speeding away and leaving the man sprawled on the road between Weston-on-Mare and Brean, she phoned Avon and Somerset Police.

Within three minutes, officers found the man near the road and arrested him on suspicion of causing a public nuisance.

A spokesman for the force confirmed the suspect, in his 30s, is also under investigation for a spate of similar offences last October.

Insp Graeme Hall said extra officers would be out on patrol following the incident.

“We took this morning’s report extremely seriously and had officers on the scene within minutes which ultimately led to the arrest being made.”

Anne posted the details of her encounter on Facebook the morning afterwards.

She wrote: “As soon as I got over the first railway bridge, I noticed something on the ground which I thought was a badger.

“As I got closer I could see it wasn’t, but in fact a man with a mask on, who was crawling and writhing on the ground.

“His mask had 2 [sic] white crosses on his eyes and he was in all black. I have honestly never been so frightened in my entire life and drove away so fast.

“It was such a strange experience that I honestly thought I had hallucinated.”

The suspect earned the nickname “Somerset Gimp” in 2018 after villagers in Claverham, Cleeve and Yatton reported being harassed by a man dressed in a masked bodysuit.

Over the past five years, the mystery offender has terrorised lone individuals on at least 16 occasions by running up to them and grunting.

In September 2021, police received reports of a masked man staring through a window at a couple in their home.

The following year in October, police arrested a man in his 30s after footage emerged of a latex-clad man crawling towards two young chefs who offered him a cigarette and urged him to get home safely.