Greek sex attack claim

Greek resorts are popular with young Britons

An 18-year-old Welsh woman has become the fourth British tourist in three months to claim to have been the victim of a sex attack on the Greek island of Corfu.

Foreign Office officials and Greek police confirmed a 29-year-old man has been arrested in connection with an alleged attempted rape.

The teenager returned home to her family in Pontypridd on Friday.

A Foreign Office spokeswoman said: "I can confirm that we are aware of an attempted rape on a British woman in Corfu earlier this week.

"We are offering assistance to the victim."

The victim's mother said the incident happened when her daughter fell out with a friend on holiday in the beach resort of Kavos .

I'm just relieved to have her back in one piece Rape victim's mother

"They were out one night and at the end of the evening, they had a bit of a row.

"My daughter stormed off, but luckily, her friend followed her.

"The next minute, some bloke grabbed my daughter - but her friend saw this and came running up the road shouting.

"He was trying to assault her but was frightened off. She chased him and then another couple gave chase too."

The man was finally caught and held until police arrived.

"My daughter is safely home now. She just wants to put it all behind her," the mother added.

"I'm just relieved to have her back in one piece, safe and sound. It is very frightening when your children go abroad on holiday but they can be attacked anywhere these days."

Series of attacks

Local reports say a Bangladeshi man, 29, has been arrested and is expected to be deported.

The attack is the latest in a series of sexual assaults on British tourists on the island since May.

Recent figures from the consulate reveal the number of reported rapes of British holidaymakers in Greece has doubled in five years from 17 in 1998 to 34 last summer.

To tackle the rising crime levels the Greek authorities have recently sent plain clothes officers to the the country's popular tourist spots.

Earlier this month it was revealed that detectives were mingling with tourists at Greek holiday resorts in an attempt to cut down on drunkenness and violence.

Resorts popular with young British holidaymakers have seen a sharp rise in violent crime in recent years.

Undercover patrols

Last year, the Rhodes resort of Faliraki hit the headlines when a number of Britons were arrested for offences ranging from lewd behaviour to drugs.

The Greek authorities plan to nip trouble in the bud by introducing what they call the "invisible solution" - undercover patrols targeting the holiday hotspots favoured by 18 to 30-year-olds.

A spokeswoman for the Greek National Tourist Organisation told BBC News Online the plain-clothes officers would adopt a "softly-softly" approach.

The spokeswoman said: "Because of what happened last summer, the local authorities decided to get together and do something about it.

"The civilian-clothed policemen will mingle with the tourists, not just to look out for trouble, but to assist them and as a preventative measure.

"The idea is not to stop people having a good time, but to try to stop things getting out of hand".

She said the patrols would also be there to help tourists who got into trouble or needed assistance.

The spokeswoman also welcomed moves by the UK Foreign Office (FO) to increase young tourists' awareness of potential dangers when travelling abroad.

The FO released a leaflet last week aimed at the 18-30 age group warning of the need for vigilance following a rise in violent and sexual assaults in holiday resorts.

The FO said the number of reported rapes of British tourists has more than doubled in five years from 61 in 1997 to 129 in 2002 - with Greece accounting for 34 cases.

The FO reviewed its travel advice to Greece last summer, strongly advising women never to accept lifts from strangers or acquaintances.