APPEAL FOR HELP IN HUNT FOR SEX ATTACK DRIVER

“This car is very distinctive and we believe it holds the key to catching this dangerous man”

GARDAÍ hunting a man who subjected a young woman to an horrific sexual assault in Tralee last year are focusing their hunt on a distinctive car the violent sex attacker was driving.

The horrifying incident featured on Monday’s edition of RTE’s CrimeCall with Gardaí issuing a public appeal as they work to catch the attacker whom was described as a particularly dangerous individual.

The attack took place in the Shanakill area at around 3am on the morning of August 30, 2016.

The victim was a young woman who – having been unable to find a taxi after a night out with friends – was walking home along Rock Street and the main Monavalley Road when she noticed she was being followed by a light metallic coloured Fiat Punto.

The car pulled up beside the woman and the driver tried to talk to her but she ignored him and kept walking.

He then drove on and turned onto the Monalee Road before pulling back out onto the main road and then into a car park near the entrance to the Shanakill estate.

As the woman walked through a lane near the car park the man grabbed her and subjected her to a violent sexual assault.

She was able to fight him off and he fled the scene. His car was then recorded driving down the Monavalley Road before turning onto Brewery Road and then the Oakpark Road where it was last seen.

Detective Sergeant Ernie Henderson told The

Kerryman that Gardaí believe tracing the car – a light coloured metalic 2000 to 2004 three-door Fiat Punto – is key to catching the attacker.

“This is a distinctive vehicle. Three door Puntos are rare enough but this was in absolutely immaculate condition. We think it’s likely that the car had either been cleaned up for sale or had recently been purchased,” said Det Sgt Henderson.

“Based on the timing of the attack, we’re asking anyone who may have sold a similar car last August or who bought one in early September to get in touch with us. They might have vital information,” he said.

“Attacks like these, where someone is attacked by a complete stranger, are thankfully rare in Tralee and we want to catch this man,” said Det Sgt Henderson.

“He’s very dangerous and if the victim hadn’t been able to fight him off we believe the incident might have been even worse,” he said.

The attacker – who gardaí say was definitely Irish – is described as being aged in his late 20s with an athletic build. He was approximately 6ft in height and was wearing a red check shirt.

Making the appeal for information on CrimeCall, Detective Sergeant John Brennan said the incident had been “very traumatic” for the victim.

“She was lucky to escape and she was lucky to be so near to her home. It happened very quickly. It was a horrific incident,” he said.

Anyone with any information on the incident is asked to contact Tralee Garda Station at (066) 7102300.

A still from CCTV footage that shows the car that Gardaí believe was used by a man wanted in connection with a serious sexual assault in Shanakill, Tralee, in late August 2016.