Police are warning students to be on the alert after a man followed a student along Whangarei streets and demanded she get in the car with him.
The 17-year-old Whangarei Girls' High School student managed to flag down a passing female motorist who drove her home. The student left school about
9.45am on Monday and was walking on Lupton Ave.
Whangarei police Sergeant Gavin Cyprian said a blue, four- door car followed the student. The driver, described as a male Maori with short dark hair - possibly balding - and in his 20s, followed the girl to Wrack St then Henry St.
Mr Cyprian said the girl then ducked up a driveway and waited. When she went back out onto the street the driver spun the car around and asked her to hop in the car. When she declined the man became aggressive and demanded she get in. She ran off and flagged down a passing female motorist.
Whangarei police area commander Inspector Paul Dimery said getting as much detail as possible about the vehicle and the offender was important and if possible the vehicle registration.
"Don't get into a car with strangers. Remember not everyone out there is nice and some members of the community that prey on children."
Marnie Worth, acting sergeant in charge of Youth Services, said students needed to be on the alert and not get in a car with strangers.
Ms Worth said the girl did the right thing by not conversing with the man and finding a safe option.
"If you find yourself in this situation get away as quickly and safely as you can. Don't talk to them because you don't have to justify your actions."
The vehicle was a blue four-door sedan, possibly with a grey patch on the front bumper. The windscreen had a crack in it and no registration sticker.
