A month on from the horrific sexual assault of a teenage boy, a quiet market town is still dealing with the aftershock.

The boy had been walking through Castle Lane, Bungay, at around 9.30pm on Saturday, August 4, when he was pushed into nearby bushes and sexually assaulted.

The man responsible remains at large.

Residents of the town were left devastated by the attack, surprised such a heinous crime could have happened so close to home.

John Brighton, 71, walks his dog near to where the attack took place, he said: “People are still talking about it and hoping something is going to happen.

“The police made an awful lot of effort but it seems things have dried up.

“I’ve never come across any trouble in Bungay, you wouldn’t think anything like that would happen around here.

“You just hope a Bungay person hasn’t done it.”

For many residents the attack has changed the way they view the town and their own safety.

One nearby resident, who wishes to remain anonymous, said: “We used to think of Bungay as a safe place, or at least I did.

“I haven’t thought about anything else since it happened. I’ve stopped walking down there – it’s a very lonely road.”

David Williams, 67, lives just off Castle Lane and was astonished by the assault.

He explained there had been a change in the town and said: “During the evenings and school holidays you could always hear children playing on Castle Hills.

“Not causing any trouble, just playing. It was nice to hear them out there enjoying themselves.

“Since the incident I haven’t heard them.”

Police are still working to find the suspect – described 6ft 2in, of slim build and wearing all black.

Temporary Det Chief Insp Nicola Wallace said: “Investigations are ongoing into the incident and our work in pursuing a number of lines of enquiry to identify the person responsible for this attack continue.

“I would repeat our previous request that anyone with any information who has not yet spoken to police about this incident to contact us.”

Calls should be made to East CID at Lowestoft Police Station on 101 quoting reference 44061/18.