Appeal after incidents in Knowsley

We are appealing for information following two separate incidents involving a white van this week.

A report was received at 7.20pm on Wednesday (16 October 2019) that a 19-year-old woman had been approached by two men standing near a white van on Grant Road, Dovecot. The men demanded she get in the vehicle, and the woman ran away.

The offenders then drove away. They are described as white, aged in their mid-20s, and slim, and spoke with foreign accents.

At around 8am today (Thursday), it was reported an 11-year-old girl was standing at bus stop on Waterpark Drive, Stockbridge Village when a white van, with dark-coloured writing on the side, pulled up next to her.

Two men on board, who had their faces covered, looked at the girl and appeared to be getting out but did not speak her. At this point, the girl ran home.

Officers are in the process of gathering more information from both females and CCTV opportunities are being explored in the surrounding areas.

Chief Inspector Phil Mullally said: "I would like to reassure the local community that we take incidents of this nature extremely seriously, although they are thankfully rare.

“While both incidents involved two men and a white van, we are keeping an open mind as to whether they are linked in any way.

“Both females involved did exactly the right thing in running away to a place of safety. While neither were physically harmed or threatened with violence, they were clearly unnerved by what took place and will be fully supported by our officers.”

Chief Inspector Mullally added: “It is possible that there were pedestrians or drivers passing by both incidents and we would urge anyone who may have witnessed the incidents or anyone with further information to get in touch and we will look into all information provided.

“If you were driving in the areas at the times they happened and have dashcam footage, please consider reviewing the footage for anything that could assist our investigation.

“Community officers regularly visit schools to work alongside teachers in giving children appropriate stranger danger advice and it is encouraging to see that the message is being taken on board.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact Merseyside Police social media desk via Twitter @MerPolCC or Facebook Merseyside Police CC. You can also call 101 quoting incident reference 19100601190 or 19100601809 contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously, on 0800 555 111 or via their online form at: https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/give-information.