A nine-year-old girl fought off a man who tried to grab her as she played with friends in the gardens of a historic stately home, police have said.
The girl was playing hide-and-seek in the gardens of Dartington Hall in Totnes, Devon, when a young man approached her from behind.
The attacker grabbed the schoolgirl by the arm but the youngster, from the Totnes area, was able to kick him to the floor and run away.
Vaughan Lindsay, chief executive officer of Dartington Hall Trust, which runs the estate, told locals to be wary.
‘The safety of our visitors and everyone living and working on the Dartington Hall estate is very important to us and we are taking this matter very seriously,’ he said.
‘We have alerted our local schools and community and are working closely with Devon and Cornwall constabulary who are treating the incident as an assault.
Police want to identify the man, who was described as white, in his 20s, around 5ft 6ins tall and with brown hair.
He was said to be wearing a dark hooded jumper and possibly had blue jeans on.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Devon and Cornwall Police.