Police are searching for a man after a teenage girl was “touched inappropriately” outside a row of shops in the middle of the afternoon.

The incident took place outside the Londis and Premier shops, in Little Oxhey Lane, South Oxhey, between 2pm and 3pm on Thursday, July 27.

There were a number of other youths at the shops connected with the assault.

Detective Constable Rob King, who is investigating, said: “I am appealing for anyone that was in the area at the time and spoke to children reporting an assault, or believes they witnessed the incident, or saw a man behaving suspiciously in the area to get in touch with me as you may have information that could assist our investigation.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact DC King on 101, quoting crime reference C3/17/994