Mullingar male arrested after allegedly exposing himself to young women

(Above) The male was apprehended and taken to Mullingar Garda Station.

A male in his 40 is to appear in court this week after being arrested for allegedly exposing himself to two young women in Mullingar on Saturday afternoon.

The incident occurred around 1pm on the Royal Canal towpath in the vicinity of Carey Bridge. The two young women were out for walk when they noticed the male hiding in the bushes.

After the incident occurred, the two women went straight to Mullingar Garda Station and the male was arrested a short time later. He was taken to the station where he was arrested and subsequently charged.

Speaking to the Westmeath Examiner, a garda spokesperson praised the young women for their prompt response and urged others to do the same if they are the victim of a similar incident or other criminal acts.

"They called to the station immediately, which was brilliant. We went down and apprehended the male and arrested him for indecency offences.

"This is a prime example of us getting the information straight away and being able to apprehend someone. This is a very serious offence. We’d always be concerned that this is a gateway offence and could lead to other things," the spokesperson said.

"Some people might pass this off but it is important that if people do come across something like this that they contact us on a 999 line if they can’t get to the station," he said.