Search for would-be sex attacker

The women were attacked near an alleyway

Police are searching for a would-be sex attacker who assaulted two young women in County Londonderry.

The man hit one of the women, aged 18, on the head with a bottle at Rathbeg Road, Limavady, on Saturday night.

He then dragged her 19-year-old friend into an alleyway where he punched her and tried to take off her trousers.

He fled when the first woman followed them into the alleyway. The attack happened on Saturday but information about it was only released on Tuesday.

The woman who was hit with a bottle sustained a wound to the back of her head which required three staples.

The second woman was treated for cuts and grazes.

The mayor of Limavady, Cllr Michael Coyle, said it was a "brutal" attack.

'Brutal attack'

"People have a right to be able to carry on a normal life," he said.

"It was very brutal. The community must try to stamp out this sort of thing."

The attacker is described as between 17 and 18 years old, between 5ft 6ins and 5ft 9ins tall, and of thin build.

He was wearing a white baseball cap and a light blue top with a number six printed on the back.

Police have appealed for witnesses to contact them.