The survivor of an attempted rape and her rescuers have had to go into quarantine after the man that attacked her was found to be infected by the coronavirus.

The shocking attack happened in the German city of Bochum where a 23-year-old man had grabbed a woman at night and tried to rape her.

The woman had managed to scream, and a passerby aged 25 who was walking with his mother intervened and managed to stop him in the middle of the attack which happened at 9.45 p.m.

In addition, although the attacker tried to run off the 25-year-old managed to pin him down, and wait until police arrived at the scene of the alleged rape in the Querenburg district of the city.

Police spokesman Volker Schuette  confirmed: “The suspect had already managed to force a woman to the floor. When the attacker saw that someone was approaching, he tried to run off. But the rescuer managed to force into the ground and despite violently resisting, held onto him until police arrived.”

When officers arrived, he had instantly claimed that he was infected with the corona pathogen, and officers then found he had a medical document confirming the diagnosis of COVID-19.

Police confirmed that the 23-year-old suspect who had no fixed address have been reminded investigative custody.

He said the victim, who was in her mid-40s, as well as the man who had rescued her were lightly injured and had already been tested for symptoms of COVID 19. They said the test results have not yet been made available.

The police spokesman also praised the person that intervened to save the woman, saying: “The witness had in what was a shocking incident prevented that anything was happening. As a result of that we owe him are thanks.”

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