Police hunt serial train defecator

Police are searching for a man who has been defecating on trains in the South East, causing tens of thousands of pounds of damage.

The offender has struck on at least 30 trains since August, smearing excrement inside the carriages.

He waits until he is alone in the carriage before committing the offence.

His "exceptionally anti-social" actions have caused a total of £60,000 of damage and even resulted in carriages being taken out of service.

British Transport Police warned that his unpleasant habit was creating a risk to public health. The force has released CCTV images of a man officers want to speak to in connection with the investigation.

Detective Constable Donna Fox said: "The man has struck at least 30 trains since August, causing approximately £60,000 in damage and cleaning costs and resulting in many carriages been taken out of service, causing disruption and cancellations to the train services and serious inconvenience to the travelling public."

She continued: "There is no particular pattern as to when he appears. He travels to various areas and at different times of the day and different days of the week and basically waits to be in part of a carriage by himself before he commits these offences.

"We have been trawling through CCTV images to try and track the man and remain hopeful that members of the public may know this man and more importantly know where he lives.

"On at least one occasion CCTV footage shows the man being disturbed by a passenger walking through a train. We are appealing for this man or anyone else who may have witnessed this man committing offences to contact us.

"If anyone sees this man travelling on the railway network, they should not approach him, but call the police or alert train staff immediately."

Copyright Press Association 2006.