A man who allegedly exposed himself to and propositioned a New Zealand woman travelling alone has been arrested in Sri Lanka after video of the encounter went viral, local police say.
Molly was followed and harassed while driving a tuk tuk through the Thambiluvil area on the east of the island on October 25 — four or five days into her solo road trip.
“He sped up to pass me, and as he passed me, he waved, and I waved back,” she told 1News.
The man, who was riding on a scooter, repeatedly overtook her and slowed down, forcing her to pass him multiple times. When she pulled over for a break, he approached from behind.
“He seemed friendly enough, so I didn’t question his intentions,” she said.
But the conversation quickly became uncomfortable. Through broken English, she understood him asking where she was staying before mentioning sex.
“I was like, ‘okay, no, absolutely not’, and I just got ready to drive away.”
At that point, he exposed himself to her.
“I wish I had reacted more firmly, but I was just in shock. I could not believe he asked me that question, and after I said no, he still had the audacity to expose himself to me like that,” she said.
Molly shared video of the incident online, which has since had millions of views, and contacted local police after being encouraged by Sri Lankans.
Sri Lankan police said the video had been circulating widely on social media in recent days, drawing international criticism and damaging the country’s reputation.
The Tourism Division, working with Thirukkovil and Pottuvil police, launched an investigation and issued a public appeal to identify the suspect, leading to the arrest of a 25-year-old man on Saturday.
“At the time of his arrest, the suspect had reportedly altered his appearance and changed his residence in an attempt to evade capture,” a statement read.
After the incident, Molly met up with friends she had been travelling with and drove in convoy with them for the remainder of her month-long trip.
However, she said the experience did not change her view of Sri Lanka.
“All of the other people were so kind and generous and welcoming, and I never had any other experience like that.
“Sri Lanka is still a very safe place, and I would still recommend it to solo female travellers.”
Molly, who was from Christchurch, said she wanted to share her story because sexual harassment was “a harsh reality for women” everywhere — not just while travelling.
“Something like this can happen in your hometown. I’ve been sexually harassed in New Zealand as well.”
She said the response online had included victim-blaming, with some suggesting it was her fault for travelling in a country like Sri Lanka.
“It’s like, you watch that video, how can you think that I’m the problem?”
Molly said it was sad that people were now questioning whether women should solo-travel.
“You can’t just expect half the population not to be able to go on holiday by themselves if that’s what they want to do,” she said.
“It’s not a problem about what women can do. It’s a problem that should be about what men are doing, not us.”
Sri Lankan police said the man was expected to be charged and appear in court in the coming days.
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