Man in custody after young woman sexually assaulted on early morning walk in Brookfield

A young woman has been sexually assaulted during an early morning walk in Brisbane ’s west, with a man now in custody as police probe the incident.

Police allege the woman, aged in her 20s, was walking along Brookfield Rd near the Brookfield Road bridge at Moggill Creek about 6.33am on Thursday when she was stopped by an unknown man and sexually assaulted.

WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Young woman allegedly sexually assaulted on morning walk

She fought her way free before running to the nearby showgrounds for help.

The woman was later taken to the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital (RBWH) in a stable condition for medical treatment.

The attacker, described as wearing black shorts and a black jumper, fled the scene on foot.

Detectives and specialist police descended on the area, searching dense bushland and a gully near the reported assault.

The incident left local workers shaken, particularly women who regularly travel through the area alone. “Our workforce is mainly young women so we just can’t be here by ourselves anymore and that’s probably the scariest part,” local worker Darcy Findlater said. “We’re a bit rattled for sure… there was a lot of cop cars and a lot of confusion as to what had happened,” another worker added.

Findlater said the police presence had been confronting. “There’s police everywhere… they were down in the creek and around and it was really terrifying.”

Hours after the alleged attack, police stopped a man in a ute and took him into custody, with the vehicle and its contents being forensically examined.

“We have a 32-year-old person of interest currently in custody. It is early days,” Superintendent Andrew Massingham said.

Police said the incident is being treated as an isolated incident and additional general duties officers will conduct patrols in the area to reassure the community.

“I say to the people of Brookfield tonight, we are with you, we stand with you and we are there in numbers to protect you tonight,” Massingham said.

“I know that this incident has shocked not only the local community, but also the wider Brisbane region.”