AN IRISH woman has shared a disturbing encounter she had with a man who followed her and a friend home after a night out in Cork.
Writing in a lengthy Facebook post, Nic ni Riain detailed how a man, thought to be in his 40s, began following them home in the early hours of Sunday morning as they made their way up Barrack Street.
The man, who was initially walking near to them, first approached the pair to ask if they could share their umbrella with him as they walked home together.
They refused him request and continued on their way, albeit with the man walking disconcertingly close by.
At that point, the man began attempting to flag down taxis, but the women’s suspicions were raised by the fact he appeared to be walking the opposite way down what was a one-way street.
He then offered to share a taxi with the two women.
When they turned him down he headed over to a nearby pub, where he began to converse with some people outside.
Assuming he had met with friends, they continued but, moments after the two women parted, the man reappeared.
At that point the situation took a sinister turn.
Nic wrote: "As my friend walked on I stayed and waited to see her get to her estate and he shot past me and turned the corner to start following her... my heart sank and I was so petrified for her safety so I started following him - I was a little behind and to be honest I’m not sure what I was going to do when I got near him but I was gonna at least attempt something.
"I thought of shouting but feared that may aggravate him and make him begin running after her sooner - as she started to get closer to the entrance to her estate he began running after her, and I began running after him - by the time I got to the top of her estate she had gotten in home safely and I could see him running past her block entrance and beyond.
"I was so relieved she was safe and spent the rest of my walk home fearing he may be behind me!"
Nic’s friend contacted Gardai to make aware of the incident when she got in home, but the incident nevertheless serves as a grim warning.
"Just be really careful out there girls," Nic added.
"If in anyway you feel uneasy and unsafe go with your gut, report him, find somebody and tell them because I don’t even want to think about what could have happened."
