A 36-year-old man has been arrested over the indecent assault of an 11-year-old girl, who was allegedly attacked after he picked her up from the side of a busy road.
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Detectives from Newcastle launched a month-long manhunt for the suspect in August after the incident in West Wallsend, west of Newcastle.
The girl told investigators she was coerced into a car by a motorist as she stood next to George Booth Drive on August 22.
It is alleged the girl was taken to Richmond Vale in the four-wheel drive, before it was parked off the busy road and she was assaulted.
The girl was able to escape from her attacker and get out of the car, raising the alarm after another motorist stopped nearby.
A search failed to find any trace of the man or his car before a public tip-off led investigators to the suspect and his arrest on Thursday.
Newcastle Child Abuse Squad detectives charged the Lake Macquarie man with one count of aggravated indecent assault.
He was refused bail to appear in Belmont Local Court on Friday.
Investigations into the attack continue.
