Calcutta, Nov. 20: Police today arrested 28-year-old Vishal Sahoo in connection with the molestation of two Irish women on Saturday.

A resident of Dilkhusha Street, Vishal owns a motor spare parts shop on Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Road. He was riding his elder brother’s motorcycle when he allegedly harassed the young tourists on Sudder Street.

Officers at New Market police station, where the women had lodged a complaint, had said yesterday that a pillion rider was also involved.

However, they clarified today that Vishal was alone on the bike.

“We had collected the number of the vehicle by talking to local shop owners and others who witnessed the incident on Saturday night. That’s how we traced Vishal,” said Ajey Ranade, DC (central).

“It now appears that the sleuths of the detective department, too, were on the lookout for him in a separate case.”

Ranade did not reveal any details of the other case.

Around 9 on Saturday night, the two women — aged 29 and 30 — were out shopping when a bike came up from behind and began following them.

They said in their complaint that the man pulled them by their hands and flung them on the ground. He fled when they screamed for help.

Soon after the complaint was lodged yesterday, officers from New Market police station met the women at their hotel on Kyd Street.

“In the course of the investigation, we learnt that Vishal had been moving around the area — along Mirza Ghalib Street, Kyd Street and Sudder Street — for some time. He had stopped at a stall to have tea and then gone about following the women,” an officer said.

The women, who are from Dublin, flew out of the city today. It is not known where they were headed.

Hotel staff said the two women were soft-spoken and kept to themselves. They had called up the help desk this morning to settle their dues as they wanted to leave “immediately”. By 11.15 am, they were out of the hotel.

“We have many tourists from France, the Netherlands, the UK and Ireland with us right now. But this incident would surely affect our business,” a hotel employee said.

“In this business more than any other, good and bad reputation spread by word of mouth.”