Raising the alarm on sex attacker
Police are considering issuing attack alarms to women living in Ballyarnett, after a number of sexual assaults in the area.
By Melissa Towell
Over the past fortnight there have been three attacks on women in the city.
The latest of these was on Wednesday morning when a woman was walking along the Ballyarnett Road at approximately 9.45am.
It is not known at this stage if the incident was linked two other assaults which took place six days earlier on the Ballyarnett Road and in Cornshell Fields.
Area commander Chris Yates said that officers are following a number of lines of inquiry but are still appealing for more information.
SDLP Councillor Shaun Gallagher declared it as a very ‘worrying’ and ‘alarming’ time in the city.
“I would ask people to be very vigilant and where possible if females can travel in groups of least two to do so. Normally people walking in broad daylight would assume they are fairly safe on their own but that doesn’t appear to be the case with this individual on the loose.”
He also appealed to anyone who sees a person acting suspiciously to report it to police.
“Even if they’re wrong it’s better to be safe than sorry.”
The assailant on Wednesday morning was described as being between 5’8” and 5’10”, of a slim build and was wearing a short black top, possibly a t-shirt or football top, black bottoms and a cream baseball cap.
In a separate incident a male is reported to have exposed himself to three female youths at Bligh’s Lane. It happened on Tuesday morning at 8.30am. The man is described as being approximately 40 years old with pale skin and was wearing stonewashed jeans.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Strand Road police station on 0845 600 8000 or the ‘Crimestoppers’ charity on 0800 555 111.
