Gardaí hopeful attacker will be caught soon

GARDAÍ are hopeful that the man who attacked a 10-year-old girl in Cork city will be apprehended soon, before he has an opportunity to strike again.

A garda spokesman said that a number of taxi drivers had come forward to help with the investigation, which got underway last Sunday after the girl was enticed into a small park and sexually assaulted.

Detectives believe the man they are looking for took a taxi or hackney from Cove Street after he attacked the girl at Parkowen, just off Douglas Street.

“We have spoken to a number of taxi drivers who were in the area at the time. But we believe there were more who have yet to come forward and it is very important we speak to them,” a garda spokesman said.

CCTV footage taken from a number of premises in the area was still being studied yesterday. Meanwhile, gardaí were continuing to carry out house-to-house enquiries and checking calls from members of the public.

The girl had been walking along Douglas Street when she was approached by a man she believes to be in his late 30s. It is understood that he pretended to have lost a dog and asked the girl to help him find it. It was on this pretext that he got her to enter the park where the attack took place.

“The incident probably happened between 11am and 11.30am,” the garda spokesman said. “Therefore, we believe the man was picked up sometime up to around 11.45am.”

The man they are looking for is believed to have short brown hair and was wearing blue jeans and a green/grey jumper. He was described as being stocky and between 5ft 9ins and 5ft 10ins tall.

Anybody with information is asked to contact Anglesea Street Garda station at [phone].