A GIRL of 16 has been left traumatised by a horrific gang rape.

The vicious attack happened in a deserted car park in Crystal Palace Park, in Bromley Borough, after the girl was snatched from a street in South Norwood close to her home by a gang of four strangers.

The college student was returning home from a cash point in South Norwood High Street when she was grabbed, in Warminster Road, at about 5.30pm, last Friday. A man came up behind her and forced her into a dark green car with darkened windows.

There were three other men in the car, which detectives believe could have been a VW Golf.

They took her to the lower overflow car park, near the National Sports Centre, where she was raped by three of the men.

After the attack, they drove off again but as the car reached the junction with Anerley Hill, at about 6.45pm, the girl was able to jump out and run away.

Det Insp Nick Downing said: "She is traumatised. It's devastating for her and her family. It's going to be the mental and psychological scars rather than the actual physical injuries that will be hardest to deal with."

He said: "It was a barbaric attack, just horrendous. And that's what draws me into thinking it was opportunistic, rather than pre-planned."

The men may have initially intended to carry out a robbery, he said. "It's possible, bearing in mind she'd just been to the bank. They may have decided to rob her and then changed their minds. We've got to look at all avenues."

Detectives have started the process of scouring all available CCTV footage, which has been seized for analysis.

The four suspects are all described as being about 20 years old. One was a black man with short hair and an earring in the left ear, another a light-skinned black man with a cane-row hairstyle, the third a light-skinned black man and another black man.

The victim, who is white, was wearing a white coat when she was abducted.

Officers are appealing for anyone who witnessed the victim being forced into the vehicle in Warminster Road or getting out of it in Anerley Hill to contact them on 020 8649 1379 or call Crimestoppers free and anonymously on 0800 555111.