A 23-YEAR-OLD was left upset and distressed after an incident in Skipton which police are treating as an attempted abduction.

The woman, who is not from Skipton but is currently living and working in the town, was walking along Newmarket Street when the incident occurred last Thursday.

Police say she was at the junction with Shortbank Road when a car pulled alongside her at about 3.40pm.

Four Asian men, all wearing shirts and ties, were in the car and at first asked her for directions and Barnoldswick was mentioned.

But, the incident turned nasty when the front seat passenger started making lewd comments at the woman and then tried to grab her arm.

The woman was able to pull free and ran along Shortbank Road. The driver followed her, nearly hitting her.

The silver Vauxhall, believed to be an Astra, then spun around, the men jeered at the victim and they drove off.

The woman ran home and the family she is staying with rang 999.

Police confirmed they are treating the incident as an attempted abduction and are appealing for information.

A police spokesman said: "The incident happened in broad daylight and in a busy part of town, so someone must have seen something.

"This was a very distressing incident for a young lady."

The four men are all aged between 25 and 27 and all have short, dark hair.

The driver had gelled-back hair and a thin beard. He wore a black shirt, a dark-coloured tie and sunglasses.

The front seat passenger had his hair gelled forward and also wore a dark shirt and black tie. He wore sunglasses on his head.

The passenger who grabbed the victim is described as fat, with a round face. He wore a grey shirt and black tie.

The final passenger also wore a shirt and tie.

The Herald understands that the police are following up several positive lines of inquiry.

o A 26-year-old man was knocked unconscious during an assault by a woman on Sackville Street in Skipton.

The offender hit him after accusing him and his friends of laughing at her while she had a disagreement with another person.

The victim, who is from Skipton, fell to the ground and had to be taken to hospital with a suspected broken nose.

The incident occurred at 2.45am on Sunday.

Police are looking for the offender who is described as white, aged 20, 5ft 6ins tall, with shoulder length, dark brown hair.

They also want to speak to witnesses.

o A teenager was punched in the face and robbed of his bike near Ingleton Middle School.

The 13-year-old boy was on Laundry Lane at 9pm on Tuesday.

He was approached by two youths who demanded he gave them his bike.

When he refused he was punched in the face and his bike forced off him.

The cycle was a £100 blue gent's racing cycle.

The first offender is described as white, 17, 6ft tall and slim. He wore a baseball cap and blue fleece style jacket.

His accomplice was white, aged about 15, of slim build, and was 5ft 11ins tall. He wore a white baseball cap and grey hooded top.

Anyone with information about any of the incidents is asked to call the police witness line on 01423 539334 or the confidential Crimestoppers line on 0800 555111.