Police are praising the actions of two people who went to the aid of a girl being assaulted in Ohope today.
But now they want to talk to the "heroes" about what happened.
The 17-year-old victim was allegedly assaulted by her 18-year-old ex-boyfriend after an argument about 2pm,
Sergeant Dennis Foster, of Whakatane police, said.
He said the girl was dragged along Pohutukawa Drive to an alleyway where the assault continued.
"A passing truck driver has stopped and gone to the assistance of the young girl," said Mr Foster.
He was joined by another person, described as a builder, and the pair managed to stop the girl being injured further.
"Police praise this kind of support from the community as it shows that the community isn't prepared to allow this kind of behaviour to continue," Mr Foster said.
"There is far too much domestic-related violence in our society and the fact that there are people out there prepared to stop it is heartening."
He said unfortunately the "heroes" had not been available to tell police what they saw and made a plea for them to come forward.
Mr Foster wants anyone who saw the incident to contact police.
"The more information that is acquired, the better the final result will be for the victim," he said.
The condition of the victim was not known tonight.
- NZPA
