A TELEPHONE engineer may be charged with sexually assaulting a York woman in her home, following a U-turn by police.

North Yorkshire Police told the woman in May that no further action was to be taken against the man, who was arrested on suspicion of sexual offences in connection with the incident in March.

She was told this decision was ‘due to there not being enough supporting evidence and inconsistencies in the account.’

The woman was outraged, claiming this was a ‘slur on her character,’ and applied for a ‘Victim’s Right to Review’ of the decision.

Now she has been told the case is likely to be referred to the Crown Prosecution Service for a charging decision after all, following the review by an independent officer.

Detective Inspector Turner, Victims’ Right to Review Officer, told her: “I can now confirm that I do feel your case should be referred to the CPS for a charging decision once some further inquiries are completed.

“This does not guarantee the suspect will be charged, but it does mean I do believe there is a realistic prospect of conviction and we should consult with the CPS to consider if the suspect should be charged.”

The officer added that they hoped the woman had been provided with some confidence that her allegation was being taken seriously and police aimed to seek justice.

The man denies the allegations.

The Press reported in April how the woman had received an apology from the force’s deputy chief constable, Phil Cain, over the way her calls to the force at the time of the incident were handled.

She claimed it took her more than four hours to get through after ringing 101 in accordance with force rules, as the incident was not ongoing, and it then took officers nearly 90 minutes to arrive.

Julia Mulligan, then the North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, said she was extremely concerned to hear about the victim’s experience and had asked for an urgent review of what happened, and why.

The DCC said then the force had fallen ‘far short of the level of service we would expect to provide, and caused her further distress,’ and the force had ‘identified learning to help us improve our call handling response’ in future.’

A force spokesperson said yesterday that following a review, further inquiries were underway prior to a referral to the CPS to consider if the suspect should be charged, adding: “We recognise this will be a very difficult time for the victim, who is continuing to receive support and assistance from specialist support organisations.”