NSW: Men urged to dob in sex attackers

AAP General News (Australia)
08-10-2001
NSW: Men urged to dob in sex attackers

SYDNEY, Aug 10 AAP - Men have been urged to dob in their mates involved in sexual crimes
against women instead of following the lead like sheep.

Assistant police commissioner Lola Scott today said friends of men involved in sexual
assaults on women across Sydney could help stop the attacks by reporting them.

"These young men have a choice," she told ABC radio.

"Instead of following like sheep, think about the victims.

"Stand up to your colleagues and say look, this is not right, I am not going to tolerate
it, I am not going to be involved and I am going to dob you in if you are going to do
it."

She said parents could also play a role in the safety of their children by teaching
them about safe behaviour.

"It's very, very important, though, that parents also just take a few minutes ... and
just have a chat to them about some of the personal safety issues," she said.

The warning follows a spate of sexual attacks on girls in Sydney's south-west in the
past 12 months.

In the latest attack a 17-year-old girl was accosted by three men and sexually assaulted
as she walked home along a street in Greenacre.

One of the men threw her against a wall and sexually assaulted her.

The assault came after a series of brutal gang rapes and sexual assaults in the region
on girls reportedly as young as 13, which led to police forming the special Strike Force
Sayda.

Police said although there were no definite links, there were several similarities
between Tuesday's attack and other incidents in which young Caucasian women have been
assaulted by Middle Eastern men.

AAP kp/sal/vr

KEYWORD: ASSAULT SCOTT

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