A SCHOOLGIRL fled a bus in terror after a man performed a sex act on himself in a nearby seat.

The 16-year-old, who was aged 15 at the time and cannot be named for legal reasons, gave evidence on the first day of the trial of Clement Kumah, aged 46, of Wateredge Close, Leigh, who is charged with performing the act upon himself in the presence of a child on New Year’s Eve, 2012.

He was apprehended after CCTV footage was circulated by the police and The Bolton News and was picked out of a police line up by the victim.

Kumah denies being the man shown in the CCTV image.

The incident happened when the girl was on the top deck of the number 36 bus, travelling from Bolton towards Little Hulton, at about 5.15pm on December 31, 2012.

Prosecuting, Adam Lodge told Bolton Crown Court that she was not far into the journey when a man sat on the left hand side of the front of the bus started to perform a sex act on himself.

He said: “She could see the face of the man as she looked across and saw him say the words 'do you like this?'”

Mr Lodge said police were able to get CCTV images of the man from the bus firm and circulate them online and in The Bolton News.

Speaking about the incident, the victim told the court: “I was in shock, I didn’t know what to do.”

The case continues.