Police hunt canal sex attacker

A SEX attacker who grabbed a young woman as she walked beside the Union Canal and demanded she strip off was today being hunted by police.

The 20-year-old victim had been walking home near St Peter's Place at Fountainbridge at 8:15pm on Thursday when she was attacked.

The suspect, a man aged between 20 and 24, made inappropriate comments towards her before grabbing her jacket and demanding she remove her clothes. The woman refused and fled.

The suspect is white, around 5ft 9in, slim to medium build, short fair hair and slight acne. He was wearing a scarf, a dark tracksuit top and light-coloured tracksuit trousers, possibly grey.

Police are appealing for anyone who saw anything suspicious to come forward. A spokesman said: "This was a very frightening ordeal."