A 35-year-old man has appeared before a court charged with raping a young woman twice in an alleyway.

The 22-year-old victim is believed to have been walking home after a night out.

Alan Bond, of no fixed home, is accused of two counts of rape in the passageway off Old Tovil Road in Maidstone, when he appeared at Maidstone Magistrates’ Court on Thursday.

Magistrates sent the case for trial to Maidstone Crown Court where an initial hearing will be held on December 8. Bond, unemployed, was remanded in custody.

Police are continuing their appeal for witnesses who may have seen the woman walk along Palace Avenue and cut through the grounds to the rear of the Carriage Museum, before crossing Knightrider Street and Hayle Road.

Anyone with information is asked to call 01622 604372 or CrimeStoppers on 0800 555111.