Young woman raped in city centre

The lane in Glasgow where the woman was attacked

Police carried out a full search of the area where the woman was attacked

Detectives are searching for a flower seller who may have vital clues after a woman was raped in Glasgow city centre.

The 23-year-old was attacked by two men in the early hours of Saturday morning after leaving the Classic Grand club in Jamaica Street to have a cigarette.

She had been talking to an Asian man selling flowers before walking towards Oswald Street, where she was grabbed by two white men and attacked in a lane.

Strathclyde Police said the woman was in shock and severely traumatised.

The woman had left the Classic Grand at about 0230 BST and got talking to the flower seller who was standing outside.

What started as a night out with friends has had a terrible ending, and we must trace the men responsible

Det Insp Douglas Weir

After a brief chat, they walked together along Midland Street and on to Oswald Street.

As she approached a nearby lane, behind Salon Services, she was attacked by the two men, who were both described as being under 5ft 10ins in height with local accents.

The flower seller was described as Asian, in his late 20s or early 30s, about 5ft 7ins tall, with dark hair and wearing blue jeans.

Det Insp Douglas Weir said: "This was a harrowing experience for the young woman to go through, and as you can imagine she is in a state of shock and severely traumatised.

"What started as a night out with friends has had a terrible ending, and we must trace the men responsible.

"Whilst we are following a number of lines of inquiry particularly surrounding CCTV, part of our main focus is to trace the flower seller who the victim was walking with before she was attacked."

He said it was not clear at this time when the woman and the vendor parted company but that it was imperative to trace him as a matter of urgency.

Det Insp Weir appealed to the man to come forward and asked members of the public to contact police if they know or have seen the man.

Police carried out a full search of the area, which is currently sealed off for forensic examinations to take place.

The victim was recovering at home with her family.