A 13-year-old boy has claimed he was grabbed by a mask man at a nature reserve and only escaped after hitting his attacker with a rock.
The schoolboy was walking through the Rainworth nature reserve in Nottinghamshire on Friday when a ‘disguised man leapt out of the undergrowth’.
The man, thought to be in his 30s, managed to grab the boy’s wrists, but he managed to escape after hitting his attacker’s knuckles with a rock who grunted as he let go.
The boy’s mum told Nottinghamshire Live: ‘He told me he was grabbed by a man who jumped out of a bush and got his wrists, and I was just like “what do you mean?”
‘It’s an area he has known as he was growing up and I sometimes take the dogs there, so you just don’t expect anything like that to happen.
Sign up for all of the latest stories
Start your day informed with Metro’s News Updates newsletter or get Breaking News alerts the moment it happens.
‘It is really scary to think of what could have happened.’
The teenager was able run away but fell into some high ferns and hid until he thought it was safe to come out.
He said the suspect is around 5’10 tall, and he was wearing a black mask, hoodie and jogging bottoms.
Nottinghamshire Police said: ‘We are investigating reports of an incident near Rufford Colliery Lane, Rainworth, at around 5.15pm on Friday, July 4.
‘This would have been an extremely upsetting incident for the boy involved and we are determined to uncover exactly what happened.
‘Extensive inquiries have taken place in the local area – including at nearby hospital facilities.
‘As our investigation into what happened continues, anyone with additional information is asked to call 101 quoting incident 553 of July 4, 2025.’
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
