Gardaí in Cork have reiterated their appeal to the public for help in trying to track down a man who sexually assaulted a 10-year-old girl near the city centre early on Sunday morning.
The girl was walking along Douglas Street at around 11.30 a.m. on Sunday when she was approached by a man who asked her to help him search for a missing puppy.
The man led the girl up a pedestrian laneway to Pairc Eóin between Douglas Street and Quaker Road where he sexually assaulted her before leaving the area on foot.
The girl reported the assault to her mother when she got home, and gardaí were quickly on the scene and carried out an extensive search of the Douglas Street, Quaker Road and Evergreen Road areas.
"We're treating this as a very serious matter. It was a very audacious sexual assault on a young girl in broad daylight, and we're convinced that somebody must have seen this man with this girl," a Garda spokesman said.
The suspect is described as in his late 30s, 5ft 9in to 5ft 10in, stocky build with brown hair. He was wearing blue jeans and a grey-green jacket. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Garda at Anglesea Street in Cork on 021-4522000.
Meanwhile, in an unrelated investigation, gardaí are continuing to search for a 36-year-old man who was convicted two weeks ago of sexually assaulting seven boys in a number of fast food restaurants and swimming pools in Cork.
The man - who cannot be named for legal reasons - failed to turn up on the final day of the trial at Cork Circuit Criminal Court and was unanimously convicted by the jury in his absence.
Judge Sean O'Donnabhain issued a bench warrant for his arrest.