Toronto police are concerned following the fourth incident in the past six weeks where children have either been approached or assaulted in the city.
On Tuesday, it’s alleged that a man approached a 10-year-old girl at an east-end trail near McLevin Avenue and Malvern Street and began to assault her. The girl reportedly kicked herself free and managed to escape the attacker.
The episode appears to be the latest in what police say is a disturbing string of occurrences where kids were approached by a stranger.
“At this point because of the nature of what happened and the concern that it has caused, there’s enough of a concern to label the man as a potential sex offender,” Toronto police spokesperson Const. Allyson Douglas-Cook told Global News.
Earlier this month, authorities issued a public safety alert after several incidents of a similar nature between February 10 and March 11 that took place within a two-kilometre radius of each other in the Malvern area.
Two of the incidents occurred east of Markham Road and Sheppard Avenue, by Burrows Hall Junior Public School, in which it’s alleged a man in a silver or grey vehicle approached children and offered them a ride. Neither child accepted the man’s proposition.
Another incident took place in front of Malvern Junior Public School, reportedly involving a man wearing a ski mask who ran towards a 10-year-old girl, who was then able to run back into the school and call for help.
Police are encouraging parents to remind children of basic safety tips, which include telling their guardian where they are going, using the buddy system when travelling and to notify a teacher, parent or authority if encountering any uncomfortable situations with an unknown adult.
Anyone with information on any of the recent incidents are asked to contact police at 416-808-4200, or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477).
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