Tauranga mum confronts man who followed her teenage daughter and 'tried to get her in his car'

A man who offered rides to teenage girls has been captured on video by a furious mother who confronted him after he allegedly followed her daughter.

The video, posted on Facebook, has been viewed more than 125,000 times since it was published on Tuesday. It was taken near a school in a suburb of Tauranga.

The video shows a mother approaching a man who is sleeping in the front seat of his car, a crimson-coloured sedan.

The man, caught by surprise, apologises and says he was trying to offer her help. Photo / via video

"You tried to get my daughter to get in your car," she says to him.

The man, caught by surprise, apologises and says he was trying to offer her help. When challenged, he struggles to explain why was offering help to the girl, who is 13.

"How can I explain this?" he says, before pausing.

"When you're lying it's real hard to explain," the mother replies.

The woman then accuses him of also trying to get a schoolgirl who was waiting for a bus to get into his car earlier in the day.

The man says he pulled over to ask if she was okay and offer her a lift because he was going her way. He adds that he is "a really good guy" and often offered rides to people.

The woman responds: "I don't think you are a good guy. I think you're preying on small children. I'm one of their mothers and I tell you what, you're lucky I'm not f…… attacking you right now.

Police found the 30-year-old man and spoke to him, a spokesman said. He was then arrested on an unrelated matter. Photo / via video

"I know what you look like, I know your car, and I tell you what, I get even a whiff that you're doing this sort of thing, I will take matters into my own hands."

When the mother asks whether it is normal to offer children a lift, the man says: "I'm sure she was at least 16".

The mother fires back: "And what difference would that make if she was 16?".

Police confirmed that they had received a report of suspicious approaches towards children outside a Tauranga school on Wednesday.

Police found the 30-year-old man and spoke to him, a spokesman said. He was then arrested on an unrelated matter - breaching his bail conditions.

He will appear in Tauranga District Court on December 20. No further details were available.

Most of the comments below the Facebook video are supportive of the mother, saying that she was brave to confront him.