Children in west Auckland are being urged to remember stranger danger, as a sexual deviant remains on the run.
Police want parents to reiterate to their children that if they're approached by someone who makes them feel uncomfortable, to run away and call 111.
The warning comes after two stories emerged of adult men preying on young children in the region.
Last week, an 11-year-old boy was abducted and sexually assaulted in Ranui.
The boy was walking home when a man driving a grey van kidnapped him after stopping and asking for directions.
He then drove him to an unknown location and sexually assaulted him, before taking him back to Ranui and letting him go. The man is believed to have held him for two hours.
Another incident occurred on Wednesday, when a man in his 30s made a "suspicious approach" toward an 11-year-old girl while she was walking to school in Waitakere.
She refused to talk to the man and ran back toward her home where family members were, before reporting it to police later that afternoon.
Detective Senior Sergeant Kim Libby praised the girl's actions yesterday, saying it was a pertinent reminder of what to do in a similar situation.
"The message we would like parents to pass on to their children is that if you are approached by anyone who you don't know or trust, run away to the nearest public place or shop and find someone who can call 111 immediately," she says.
Police are still appealing to the public in regard to both incidents, and have urged anyone with information to contact their local police station or call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
Newshub.
