A TEENAGE girl says she was left sobbing in the arms of a shopkeeper after she ran from a group of four men who she feared would pull her inside their car.

Ellesse Robinson, 15, says she was walking down Astwood Road in the Rainbow Hill area of Worcester at around 7pm on Sunday when a group of men in a car pulled up next to her.

She said: “I walked to Premier on Sunday to buy my boyfriend some sweets and snacks because it was his birthday, which is the reason I was alone or I would’ve been with him. As I walked out of the shop and was waiting at the traffic lights, a grey Peugeot pulled up very slowly towards me. There were not many other cars around and as they pulled up I initially leaned in thinking they needed help but I saw them all laughing.

“Two men in the back told me to 'come.' I stepped back then the man in the front passenger side opened his car door and I genuinely thought he was going to grab me.

"I felt so scared as they were all in their mid or early 30s and really big. They sounded Turkish or Romanian, they were all tanned. After he opened his door I basically shouted “No no no” repeatedly. I was edging backwards and then managed to run back into Premier.

“Sarah was stocking the shelves and I ran up to her and said: ‘Sarah, some men just tried to pull me in their car.’ She shot up despite having back problems and ran to the door, then she came back up to me and gave me the biggest hug I’ve ever had in my life. I cried into her shoulder, my legs were shaking like crazy, it was like a really bad anxiety attack. Sarah walked me home, which I am so grateful for. When we got home we phoned the police.”

West Mercia Police's Detective Inspector Ed Slough said: “We are aware of an incident in Astwood Road at just before 7pm where a teenager reported a vehicle acting suspiciously. We appreciate this incident must have been frightening for her and are investigating.”