Man faces several charges after two alleged unprovoked attacks on women in Victoria

A man faces several charges following two allegedly unprovoked attacks on women in Victoria, plus an assault of a police officer.

A statement from Victoria police says the man was held by bystanders after a woman in the city's downtown core was punched Friday.

Police say the suspect assaulted the officer while in custody for the first attack and during the ongoing investigation police also learned a pregnant woman had been punched shortly before the incident that led to the man's arrest.

No one was seriously hurt in any of the assaults but police say the man was convicted of a similar attack in 2019 and recommended charges against him include two counts of assault, one count of assaulting a police officer, and one count of breach of a conditional sentence order.

Victoria police on Twitter:

Officers arrested a man on Friday afternoon after two separate, random attacks targeting women. The man was also breaching conditions from a previous assault causing bodily harm conviction, for randomly assaulting a woman downtown in 2019. #yyj