Police arrested a 25-year-old man from Eindhoven for the alleged rape of two women in Eindhoven and Valkenswaard, local broadcaster Omroep Brabant reports.

A 23-year-old French women reported being raped on Wednesday by a man who had offered her a lift to her hotel on his scooter. He then drove to a park where he raped her.

On the following Sunday a 15-year-old girl was forced by a man to mount his scooter in Valkenswaard whereupon he drove her to a wooded area where he raped her. On the same day a woman from Eindhoven came forward who said a man on a scooter had approached her and followed her but she had managed to get away.

The description she gave of the man coincided with the description of the other women and police were able to apprehend the man on Sunday night.

Police said they had not wanted to publicise the rapes at the time. ‘We were in two minds about it but decided not to because we had lots of clues and we didn’t want to run the risk of the perpetrator trying to get rid of incriminating material,’ a spokesman told the broadcaster.

Police said the man may have attacked other women and is asking anyone who recognises his modus operandi to contact them.