Girl, 16, sexually assaulted at Hollywood Bowl birthday party

A 16-year-old girl was sexually assaulted at a bowling alley while celebrating a birthday party.

Officers were called to Hollywood Bowl in Broughton Lane, Sheffield last Monday night to reports of an indecent assault.

A teenage girl was stopped from entering a toilet by three young men, two of whom touched her “inappropriately over her clothing”, South Yorkshire Police said.

The third was then stopped by security, and in the presence of officers, he provided the names and addresses of the other two.

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“With the consent of the victim’s mother, the three young men were dealt with by a community resolution and are prohibited from attending the Hollywood Bowl in the future,” police added.

However, the girl’s mother – who has not been identified – told the Sheffield Star that staff initially suggested the matter could be dealt with internally.

The mother claimed staff gave the girl free passes and vouchers because they encouraged her not to make a formal complaint.

She said she had written to bosses at the Hollywood Bowl requesting an investigation into how the incident was handled by staff.

Her letter said: “It is extremely concerning that your staff minimize these types of incidents and try to encourage victims not to make formal complaints by offering free passes and vouchers.”

A spokesperson for the Hollywood Bowl confirmed that police are investigating the incident. “We take this incident very seriously and offer the police our full support and cooperation with their ongoing investigation,” the company said in a statement to Yahoo News UK.

“We are also conducting an internal review of the incident at the center.”

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