An Auckland woman has been fearful to return to her favourite beach spot after a "disgusting" encounter with a man who performed an indecent act in front of her.
The Kingsland woman, who only wanted to be named as T, said on an afternoon trip to Point Chevalier Beach on January 27, a man walked "very, very close" to her, then sat about five metres away under a tree and began masturbating.
The incident comes after several similar cases in the past few months, including at Auckland Domain on the weekend.
"I thought it was really strange, he was staring at me for ages and I thought he was recording me," T said before the incident occurred.
She told 1 NEWS she kept her head down, but a while later when she heard a noise she looked up to see him committing the indecent act.
"I was terrified and I consider myself quite confident," she said, adding that she does boxing.
"I froze, I literally froze."
The 36-year-old said there was some grandparents and grandchildren about 20 metres away, but she thinks he was looking at her and another woman in her mid-to-late 20s, who was about five metres away.
"I freaked out. It happened so quickly," T said.
The "disturbing" sound and his face is still burned in her mind.
"It's disgusting - that face and that action."
She described the man as white, around 5'6 and in his late 30s. He was a stocky build, bald and had a large tribal tattoo on the back of his right calf. She said he was wearing long black shorts, which may have covered the tattoo if it went up higher on his leg, and a black t-shirt.
T called police immediately and said they responded quickly but the man had fled.
A police spokesperson told 1 NEWS they were called to the beach around 2.30pm, but after making inquiries and searching the area the man was not found.
"Police have been making a number of inquiries since and are following positive lines of inquiry," they said.
T said she's going into a police station to possibly identify a suspect this week.
The incident comes after a man was photographed "exposing himself" and performing an "indecent act" at Auckland Domain at the weekend.
As well, there has been other similar reports over the past three months in Auckland.
"Police treat these matters seriously and encourage anyone who witnesses this behaviour to report it to police immediately," the spokesperson said.
However the "terrifying" incident not only left T fearful to go back to the location, but she also considered throwing away her bikini after the incident, having blamed herself initially.
Clinical psychologist Kathryn McPhillips, who is the executive director at HELP Auckland - a specialist provider of sexual abuse support services - said it was common for people to initially blame themselves.
She told 1 NEWS victims are socialised to blame themselves for sexual aggression that is directed at them and that it can make people feel safer.
"This works as it allows us to think that we can stop this happening to us again by just not doing what we did again, whether that was wearing a bikini or walking through a park at night or going on a date.
"This initial sense of safety can be helpful in calming your nervous system after you have been frightened.
"When this kind of thinking becomes a problem is when the world reinforces the idea that you are to blame, so that rather than the idea that you are partially responsible slipping away as you no longer need it to bolster your feeling of safety, it stays around and you continue to blame yourself for someone else’s behaviour."
McPhillips urged anyone who has experienced these crimes to seek support if they want it.
"One of the difficulties can be that people around you can minimise the experience, thinking that if someone didn’t touch you, it won’t have hurt you," she said.
"However, this kind of inappropriate sexual behaviour represents a threat, potentially a very significant threat, so it is common for people to be quite impacted."
McPhillips said she hears similar incidents on a fairly regular basis, but that it was hard to know if there was an increase in crime or increase in reporting.
She said it was great victims were reporting to police, with many just wanting to know the offenders won't do it to anyone else.
T urged anyone in a similar situation to trust their gut and leave if they feel uncomfortable.
"He saw me see him and he kept going," she said.
"He's definitely done it before and he'll do it again.
"It's disgusting, it's gross. We should be able to go out without constantly scanning the beach.
"I don't think one person should ruin it [her favourite spot] for me."
Send your news tips to Rebecca.Moore@tvnz.co.nz
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