POLICE believe this man could help them trace an attacker who dragged a woman on to an isolated cycle path and indecently assaulted her.

He is shown here captured on CCTV, as he got off a First York bus at a stop near the junction of Haley's Terrace and Haxby Road.

The 20-year-old victim got off the same bus seconds later. She was then grabbed from behind and assaulted by a mystery assailant.

PC Tony Santorsola, of York Police, said officers were "keeping an open mind" about whether two other indecent assaults in the past two weeks, in Clarence Street and Grosvenor Terrace, could be connected.

He said the three victims were not physically harmed in the assaults, but urged anyone who recognised the bus passenger to contact him urgently on 0845 60 60 24 7.

Speaking about the man caught on CCTV on January 24, at 7pm, he said: "This man was obviously in the area at the time of the attack and may have vital evidence that could help our inquiries."

Another attack took place in Clarence Street, less than half a mile from the first incident, at the coach entrance to the Union Terrace car park.

A 31-year-old woman was on her way to work when a man walking in the opposite direction blocked her path and indecently assaulted her before casually carrying on.

She has only this week come forward to police as a result of a witness appeal in the Evening Press about the Haxby Road attack, said PC Santorsola.

He added that the attacker was aged in his late teens or early 20s, 5ft 11ins and of average build.

He wore dark clothing, a baseball cap and a distinctive thin and shiny navy blue waterproof. The third incident took place in Grosvenor Terrace, off Bootham, when a 28-year-old woman was grabbed by a bicycle-riding attacker on January 26 at about 8am.

The man was described as in his 20s. He was scruffy and wore lots of clothes, including a dark-coloured Parka-style jacket with a fur lining around the hood. A striped scarf covered his face.

Anyone who knows the passenger, or who has information about any of the three attacks, can also call Crimestoppers, for free and in confidence, on 0800 555 111. You may receive a cash reward.

Updated: 09:27 Saturday, February 05, 2005