An 11-year-old boy in Norwich was grabbed by a man who tried to pull him into an alleyway.

It happened on Monday, October 31, between 7.20am and 8am when the victim was walking at the top of Churchill Road towards Spencer Street when a man grabbed him by the arm and attempted to pull him into an alleyway.

The victim managed to break free and run away after a male member of the public shouted at the suspect. The victim was not injured.

The suspect is described by police as mixed race, 5ft 7in, and of skinny build.

He was wearing a black Nike baseball cap, a white hoody, black jeans and black trainers, and he was last seen running down the alleyway towards Knowsley Road.

Detective chief inspector Russ Wilkinson said: 'We are in the early stages of our enquiries and we have been working with the victim to establish the full circumstances surrounding the incident.

'I am particularly keen to identify and speak to the man who was passing by and shouted at the suspect as he may have significant information for the investigation.

'While I understand the details of the incident will cause concern among the community, I would like to stress the motive of this attack remains unclear and incidents of this nature are rare in Norfolk.'

Police would like to hear from any witnesses who were in the area at the time or anyone who may have seen or be aware of a man acting suspiciously around the alleyway between Churchill Road and Knowsley Road in the time leading up to the incident.

Anyone with information should contact Norfolk Police on 101 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.