A 30-YEAR-old woman was sexually assaulted as she walked home in Burnley.

Police said that hours later a second woman was also targeted in the area and officers are now hunting the attacker.

The first woman was assaulted after she was pushed against the wall of an alleyway in Wilton Street, Burnley, when a man stepped out of a backyard and grabbed her arm at 7.30pm on Saturday.

The man ran off towards Briercliffe Road when she managed to call police.

Officers said before the attack the woman had been approached by a man who appeared to have been watching her as she walked towards Salus Street.

Then around 1am another woman called police after she was approached by a man in Hillingden Road, Burnley.

Police are investigating whether the two incidents are linked.

The woman said she was followed by a man who asked her where she lived.

She told him she was ringing the police.

He then walked off.

The man in the first incident has been described as Asian aged between 30 to 40 and around 5ft 11in to 6ft tall.

He is of large build with a very flat nose and spoke with a local accent.

DC Neil Scholes said: “I would like to reassure people that incidents of this nature are rare and a full investigation is underway with uniformed officers in the area offering reassurance.

“I would appeal to anybody that was in the Wilton Street or Salus Street area of Burnley around 7.30pm on Saturday night that saw a man acting suspiciously or believes they may have witnessed the incident itself to come forward.”

Anyone with information is asked to call Lancashire Police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 11