Three terrified women feared they were going to be raped as a North Yorkshire man with mental health problems carried out a series of "bizarre" early morning attacks.

Philip Wood, 36, who had a child with him during the attacks, confronted two of his victims in their own homes, while the third was opening the family shop.

Wood was only arrested after police arrived at the home of his third victim to find him upstairs shouting at the hysterical woman.

Durham Crown Court was told officers arrested him after a struggle, during which one of them was injured.

Wood, of Church Close, Ripon, was said to be suffering a psychotic illness at the time and had left his home that morning "seeking help".

At a previous hearing, he admitted two charges of indecent assault, one of assault with intent to resist arrest and one of criminal damage.

Judge Denis Orde said such offences would not normally merit a lengthy prison sentence, but after reading three psychiatric reports and two probation service reports on Wood, he made an indefinite hospital order under Section 37 of the Mental Health Act.

Wood will be treated at a special unit within Harrogate Hospital until it is considered safe to release him into the community under a supervised regime.

Mark Styles, prosecuting, said all three incidents took place in neighbouring streets either side of 6am on July 28 last year.

Ian West, for Wood, said he had received treatment for mental health problems and his bizarre behaviour was the result of his suffering hypermanic episodes.

"When he's not ill, he represents no danger of offending. He went out that night searching for help from someone he met from a religious sect."

Sentencing Wood, Judge Orde said: "It's not much comfort to the victims to say he would not have done this if he had been well.

"These women suffered a terrible ordeal. It was degrading, humiliating, embarrassing and terrifying, normally far too serious to justify a non-custodial sentence."

Updated: 11:35 Tuesday, June 19, 2001