A DRUNKEN knifeman who attacked a nine-year-old girl in Witham was last nightstill on the run.The girl and her friend, also nine, recovered enough from their ordeal to describe the attack so police could issue more information.

A DRUNKEN knifeman who attacked a nine-year-old girl in Witham was last nightstill on the run.

The girl and her friend, also nine, recovered enough from their ordeal to describe the attack so police could issue more information.

The man targeted the girl, and her friend as they played on swings in the Stevens Road playing field, near the John Bramston School, at 7.30pm Monday.

He watched them as he swigged a can of lager with a group of other men near the playing area. He was still drinking and clutching the remains of a six-pack when he walked over and tried to get them to talk to him.

One girl told them they did not talk to strangers, and they started to move away. But he would not leave them alone, and they became so alarmed they ran across the field towards the Stevens Road entrance.

The boozy thug chased the girls for several hundred yards before he got near enough to grab one from behind.

That was when the girls saw he had a small knife in one hand and held it to the throat of the girl he was holding.

Terrified, she screamed and struggled free. They both ran for help and the man fled.

They later told their parents and the police were called

The force helicopter and police sniffer dogs failed to find a trace of the man.

The girls, who have not been named but live nearby, have been formally interviewed and described their attacker.

They said he was white, 5ft 8ins tall, with brown cropped hair and in his early twenties. His face was stubbled, and he wore a baseball cap, a dark t-shirt with a pocket at the front and baggy blue jeans, skateboard style.

An Essex Police spokesman said: "Luckily for them, they are quite streetwise and realised that a stranger trying to talk to them might be up to no good. "They were proved right, and their quick wits helped them escape a situation which could have been very serious.

"The girls were left traumatised by their experiences, but soon recovered enough to give police an account of the attack. This man is potentially very dangerous and we need to find him as soon as possible."

Anyone with any information should call police on 01376 501212.