Police in Melbourne are searching for an African man who allegedly sexually assaulted a grandmother on a nature strip where she was playing with her grandson.
The shocking alleged assault took place on December 16 last year at the intersection of Alfrieda Street and Craigielea Avenue in St Albans at about 2.50pm.
Victoria Police have been told the 66-year-old woman was approached by an unknown man who asked her multiple times for cigarettes, and she repeatedly replied that she did not have any.
As she walked away with her grandson he approached her from behind and allegedly sexually assaulted her while making vile comments.
The grandmother shouted at the man who then walked off on Craiglea Avenue then up Collins Street, before doubling back down Collins Street and walking back down Craigielea Avenue towards View Street.
Detectives from the Brimbank Sexual Offences & Child Abuse Investigation Team have appealed for assistance identifying the man, and have released CCTV and a facial composite of a man they believe can assist with inquiries.
The offender is perceived to be of African appearance, approximately 175cm tall with a slim build, a mark on the left side of his cheek and protruding teeth.
He was wearing a black and white varsity jacket, a brown cap, black shirt, and dark-coloured skinny jeans.
According to the 2021 Census, St Albans in Melbourne’s north-west is just 32.5% Australian-born.
The investigation comes as detectives hunt for a Middle Eastern man who allegedly tried to kidnap a schoolgirl in Doncaster, also in the afternoon, and an Indian man who allegedly stuck his mobile phone under a public shower cubible at a Melbourne beach and filmed a naked five-year-old girl.
