A MIDDLE-aged man grabbed a 15-year-old girl around the back of the neck in Bewdley town centre after she refused to pick up paper from a fish and chip shop.

Police are looking for the man, aged about 50, after the incident, outside the Merchant Fish Bar in Load Street at about 7.05pm on Saturday.

A spokeswoman for Kidderminster police said the man told her to pick up a chip wrapper that was on the floor, claiming she had thrown it.

"When she refused, he picked up the wrapper himself, grabbed her around the back of the neck and made her put it in a nearby bin. The victim did so while continuing to protest her innocence," she said.

"She was left with red marks to the back of her neck and was shaken."

The incident is being treated as a common assault. Witnesses are asked to contact police on 08457 444888.