A 16-year-old girl had to be rescued by pub staff after a man followed her through the streets of a village in north Wales. The girl's stepmother said that the man began "staring" at the teenager at a bus stop in the Flintshire village of Hawarden, then approached her and followed her, North Wales Live reports.
Police are now appealing for information about the incident that took place on Tuesday, January 31, which began after the girl finished work and walked towards the bus stop to travel home. Her stepmother said: "She noticed a gentleman looking at her, staring at her, and then eventually he crossed the road and approached the bus stop to try and talk to her.
"She was answering him back, but was not overly confident and kept trying to move away from him. But he continued to move closer to her, so she decided to speak to her friend on the phone and, as she walked away, he shouted: 'I thought you were getting the bus.'"
Read more: 'I lost my job and became dependent on foodbanks to feed my daughter'
According to the girl's stepmother, the man continued to ask the girl where she was going. In response, the teenager said she was meeting a friend and kept walking in the direction of the Crown and Liver pub in the village. "She phoned us and was panicking on the phone," her stepmother said.
"We said: 'is there a pub nearby?', and she said: 'I'm walking past one now'. So she walked straight into the pub and explained to the gentleman that there was a fella following her."
The stepmother said the man followed the girl into the pub, so staff took her into the back for safety and escorted him from the premises. The teenager was then safely picked up and taken home.
Following the incident, a North Wales Police spokesperson said: "At around 6pm on Tuesday, January 31, we received a report of a man behaving suspiciously around a female on The Highway, Hawarden.
"It is reported the female walked away from the man towards the Crown and Liver Inn, before going inside. Enquiries are ongoing and anyone who witnessed the incident, or anything suspicious at the time, is asked to get in touch via the website or on 101, using reference A015109."
READ NEXT:
- Law firm worker made fraudulent claims and got £338,000 transferred into her own bank account
- Tributes after death of Welsh politician's 'kind and wise' son
- House of Fraser in Cardiff city centre set to close down
- Police investigating death of popular lorry driver
- Heartbroken fiancée pays tribute to security guard 'loved by everyone'