The woman has given a detailed statement to gardaí, following the disturbing incident on a rural road. File pic
By Carmel Hayes
A SINISTER incident in which a young woman was accosted by a man on a rural road in Laois is being investigated by gardaí.
The woman was out for a run on a bright evening after work when a driver passed, stopped his car and waited for her around a bend.
When she turned the corner, the man crossed the road with his arms outstretched and made an attempt to grab her. When the woman shouted at him to get back into his car, he kept his arms up and made another movement to grab her.
Fortunately, the shocked woman managed to run to a house nearby and was helped by residents.
Aged in her mid-30s, the woman told the Laois Nationalist: “I saw him go back to his car and I thought he was going to spin the car around and hit me, as he could see that I was trying to get the registration number.
“My worry is that another girl won’t be as lucky. I’m very shaken and upset by what happened. I’m also scared that this man will learn from his attempt and be successful the next time he has an opportunity.”
The disturbing incident happened on Friday week, 26 April, on a local road in the Eyne area, between Mountmellick and Portlaoise, when the woman was out running on a loop road that takes in Killeen, Eyne and Derrydavy.
It was a bright, sunny evening and the woman’s Garmin pinpoints the exact time and location in the townland of Eyne where the incident happened.
After she escaped to a nearby house, the Mountmellick Rural Text Alert Group was contacted and sent out a warning that evening, which was also published on the Laois Nationalist website. The Mountmellick group posted on social media: ‘We have been made aware of an attempted abduction this evening in the Eyne area. An attempt to force a lady into a car occurred. There are no further details. This is unbelievable that it is becoming too dangerous to even go for a walk/run in your own area. Stay safe, look out for each other.’
Since then, the distressed woman has given details about the incident to this newspaper, in the hope of protecting others while a garda investigation continues. She said: “I want people to be alert for this person and for him to be stopped, before something incomprehensible happens another girl or woman. I have expressed the same concerns to the guards.”
The woman began her run at 6.12pm and was in the Eyne area at 6.40pm when she noticed a car driving very close behind her. Although it is a local road, the route is quite busy with traffic and has a considerable number of houses.
The woman recalled: “The first thing that drew my attention was that the car was too close to me, so I was annoyed. I was running on the left hand side of the road and the car was on the right. Then the car passed me and kept going around the bend, so I couldn’t see it.
“When I ran around the bend, the car was parked in beside a hedge on the left hand side. The man had the driver’s door open and was leaning out of the car, as if he was looking for something on the ground.
“Then he got out of the car and continued looking for something, but I was aware that he kept glancing back at me. At that stage, I was running on the right hand side of the road and I felt the red flags were up.
“As I got closer, he put his arms up and came across the road towards me, as if he was going to grab me.”
The woman said she put her hand up and shouted: “Stop, please get back into your car. But when I shouted, he still didn’t drop his arms.”
Keeping his arms raised, the man made another movement towards the woman as if to grab her. She turned and sprinted in the opposite direction and was eventually admitted to a house by residents, after getting no answer in two other homes.
The saloon car had an Irish registration and the man appeared to be either Irish or Eastern European, possibly aged in his 40s**. The woman has given more extensive details in a statement to gardaí, who are carrying out a thorough investigation and canvassing CCTV in the area.
The woman said she was very upset and shocked by the encounter, which she keeps replaying in her mind and has difficulty sleeping.
She said: “I don’t know if I will ever feel comfortable running on my own again. What worries me too is that this could happen to anyone out for a walk in broad daylight and others mightn’t be able to sprint like I can.
“I do regard what happened as an attempted abduction, as I can see no other reason why someone would do what he did. Thank God he didn’t get a hand on me, as I think I would have fallen to the ground and not been able to get away. My fear is that another girl might not be as lucky so please be alert, no matter how peaceful and safe a road appears to be.”
**Edited to add: The Laois Nationalist has agreed not to publish more specific details while the Garda investigation is underway.
