A devastated mum has issued a terrifying warning after her daughter was attacked by a man in a balaclava close to her home.
Chealsie Moore says her 12-year-old wee girl was assaulted by the masked assailant on Sunday night when a figure leapt from the shadows near their Kilmarnock home and punched the youngster on the side of the head.
The schoolgirl was left with burst lips and jaw injuries and has been left so traumatised by the attack that she doesn't want to go to school.
She told the Kilmarnock Standard: “It is like the worst nightmare ever, I feel like our whole world has crashed down.
“My daughter feels so unsafe, it’s horrible. She is only 12, she is really struggling.
“I can’t believe it, who does that to a child? She is devastated.
“She is such a good girl, she is doing favours for people trying to avoid being tarred by the same brush as some other kids.
“It is absolutely disgusting that someone can do this.
“I don’t know why anyone would target her, she is a very loved wee girl and respected, it makes no sense that she would be targeted, who goes around hitting wee girls?"
Chealsie has now issued an emotional plea for witnesses or CCTV footage after the youngster was set upon while walking a friend's Staffie dog at around 7pm in a lane between Loudoun Avenue and Treeswoodhead Road
Chealsie added: “She is terrified, she doesn’t even want to go to school, I am off work to try and help her get through it as best as I can.
“This is enough to scar her for a long time, I don’t know when she’ll feel safe enough to go out herself again.
“We are all in panic mode, her face is in shreds – it was a cowardly act whoever it came from.
Chealsie feels like there's too much evidence pointing to the fact that the attack was targeted rather than random.
On the horrifying incident, she detailed: “She has been doing dog walking around the area for some neighbours just to earn some extra pocket money, she has been desperate to work and she is such a good girl.
“She was walking a dog from a house round the corner, the walk consumed of Treeswoodhead Road and Whatriggs Road and some streets in between, she then headed into the lane between Treeswoodhead Road Clinic and Loudoun Avenue.
“As far as she was aware no one was following her, she didn’t feel the presence of anyone.
“It’s going to sound crazy, but I think she had been followed and the man knew that the dog wasn’t too responsive and knew what he was going to do.
“Most people wouldn’t attack someone with a dog, you wouldn’t risk that, so I think he was following her.
“It’s the same route every night she does, so I feel like it was targeted."
Chealsie believes the assailant was lurking in the alley waiting to attack.
She said: “He didn’t even come from the front or the back, he attacked from the side – so he’d been standing in the dark lane and she felt a massive punch in the side of her face.
“She said it was a bit like slow motion, she stumbled and he didn’t say a word, it was just weird. As she turned round he was running away but looking her in the eye at the same time. She said she thought she was being kidnapped."
She added: “It’s absolutely horrific, by the time I’d got round to where it happened there was no sign of anyone.
“I am praying to God that someone has some kind of footage, I feel like all I need is someone having a guy with the description on camera and it could help.
“The police said they aren’t too worried because nothing else happened, but that makes me feel worse because I feel like it was targeted."
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Around 7.20pm on Sunday, October 30 officers received a report of a 12-year-old girl having been assaulted near to Loudoun Avenue, in the Shortlees area of Kilmarnock.
“Enquiries are ongoing.”
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