Man arrested after alleged dawn attack on eastern suburbs run club
Police have arrested a man after he allegedly turned a peaceful morning run into chaos by attacking members of an eastern suburbs running club.
A man allegedly launched an early-morning attack on members of a Sydney run club out jogging a popular coastal path.
Around a dozen members of the Coogee Run Club were set upon by the man near Clovelly Beach shortly before 7am on Thursday.
One witness told The Australian the man, who was also wearing running gear, allegedly started biting and punching members of the group at random.
The popular run club was in the middle of their usual Thursday morning run down the idyllic coastal strip when the alleged attack took place.
With almost 14,000 Instagram followers, the Coogee Run Club has become a fixture of the Coogee Beach community.
The popular group meets four times a week to run a range of speed sessions, short runs and long distance runs together.
It grew so popular in recent years, organisers began hosting a range of social events outside of running.
A NSW Police spokesman said emergency services were called to the scene on Ocean Street, Clovelly at 6.50am, following reports of an assault.
A huge police presence descended soon after and arrested the individual as traumatised members of the run club gave statements.
The alleged attacker could be seen sitting on the ground, surrounded by a group of police, while other officers continued to take statements from distressed runners.
Officers were told the man, aged in his 20s, had allegedly damaged a vehicle before attacking the group of runners, the police spokesman said.
After police arrested the man, he was taken to Prince of Wales Hospital for assessment.
It’s understood no serious injuries were reported. However, an ambulance was in attendance.
NSW Paramedics treated two males for minor injuries, the police spokesman said.
While no one was seriously hurt, the runners were clearly distressed after the alleged attack.
Police inquiries into the incident are continuing.
