A sex attack on a tourist in broad daylight on a busy Nelson road has been foiled by passing motorists.
Nelson police say a man asked to walk with a 24-year-old Australian visitor on Haven Road at about 2.45pm on Sunday. He tried to drag her into bushes near the Auckland Point School.
Detective Aaron Kennaway said the woman screamed and fought back and her attacker ran off when a couple stopped their car and went to help.
"Things could have ended very very differently for her if she hadn't fought back and if these people hadn't helped her out," he said.
"A broad daylight attack like that is a very worrying thing."
Aaron Kennaway said police are seeking information from anyone who saw the incident.
The man is described as pakeha, about 1.82 metres tall, with graying whiskers.
h] Dunedin investigations
Police are investigating two sexual assaults in Dunedin.
In the first, police say a 20-year-old woman was forced into a lane and attacked at about 4.45am on Saturday morning, by a man she met earlier that night at an inner city bar.
About 5.30am another 20-year-old was attacked by a man she had befriended while walking home from town.
Police investigating the attacks say young women out on the town must take more responsibility for themselves.
Detective Jenny Glover told Summer Report that the days when young women can become intoxicated and get home safely are gone, and that if young women are going to drink to excess they should do so at home rather than in clubs.
Ms Glover said the incidents were unrelated.
