Four people, two of them aged 17, have been charged over the alleged rape and false imprisonment of a woman at a house in Weston-super-Mare, in Somerset.

The charges follow a report to Avon and Somerset Police that the woman had been threatened, raped and held against her will at the property on Sunday 21 June. The force’s specialist serious sexual offences unit, Operation Bluestone, led the investigation and coordinated the arrests of the four suspects, who are aged 19, 18 and 17.

Tommy Campbell, 19, from Weston-super-Mare, is charged with six counts of rape, one of sexual assault, one of false imprisonment and one of assault causing actual bodily harm. Rio Welling, 18, also from the town, faces two counts of rape and one of false imprisonment.

The two 17-year-old boys cannot be named because of their age, in line with UK laws protecting minors. One is charged with three counts of rape, one of false imprisonment and one of assault causing actual bodily harm; the other faces one count of rape and one of causing actual bodily harm.

All four were remanded in custody and were due to appear before Taunton Magistrates’ Court on Saturday 11 July.

Detective Inspector Natalie Thatcher, the senior investigating officer, described the charges, authorised by the Crown Prosecution Service, as a significant milestone after several weeks of investigations. She said the woman had been kept updated by specially trained officers, who would continue to offer her whatever support she needed.

She acknowledged that coordinated, pre-planned arrest operations across Weston-super-Mare and the neighbouring suburb of Worle on Thursday had caused some concern locally, but said the force had wanted to be transparent about why they were necessary, and thanked residents for their patience.