Man '˜restrained' after taking photo of young girl in Portsmouth

The seven-year-old Portsmouth girl was walking in Commercial Road on Saturday afternoon.

A passer-by and the girl’s step-father restrained the man and took his phone from him.

Her step-father said: ‘I wasn’t horrible or aggressive but I did restrain him.

‘I just pushed him up against Debenhams’ window.’

He added: ‘It was a horrible situation.’

Police were called at around 1.40pm and deleted the image.

A Hampshire police spokeswoman said: ‘We did receive a report of a man taking a photo in Commercial Road at about 1.40pm on Saturday, July 30.

‘He took a photo from a distance of the back of a family of three which included a seven-year-old girl.

‘Police looked at it; it was not an indecent image, it was the back of three people but advice was given and the photo was deleted.’

She confirmed police had deleted the image.

No crime was recorded by police and the man was not arrested.

Legal experts say it is not a crime to take photographs of people in a public place.