North Cork gardaí search for man after alleged assault of woman in Island Wood

The incident occurred at around 7.10pm on Thursday.

The woodland, while secluded, is very popular with walkers in the area.

Gardaí described the suspect as white and thin, with straggly strawberry blond hair. He was wearing light-coloured jeans and a camouflage gilet top.

The woman did not require medical attention following the incident. She raised the alarm immediately with gardaí in Mallow, who have now issued an appeal for witnesses to come forward.

They have issued a specific appeal for any road users who were travelling in the vicinity of Island Wood on the outskirts of Newmarket, and surrounding areas on Thursday between 4pm and 10pm and who may have camera footage, including dash cam and action cameras, to contact investigating gardaí and make the footage available to them.

“Any person who was walking, cycling, running or visiting the Island Wood walking trails yesterday evening and who may have noticed any unusual activity, is asked to contact investigating gardaí,” a garda spokesman said.

Anyone with information which may assist Gardaí in their investigation is asked to contact Mallow Garda Station on 022 31450, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any Garda station.