“The serious sexual assault in Ballymena is shocking in all respects. The apparent overlap with immigration tensions is an added dimension of concern.
“Those commenting on social media should be careful not to prejudice the judicial process which must now bring justice to this situation.
“Meanwhile my thoughts are very much with the young girl and her family.”
TUV MLA Timothy Gaston added:
“Once again Ballymena has hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons after another young girl was sexually assaulted. My thoughts are with the girl at what must be a traumatic time.
“Since being co-opted to Stormont I have constantly raised the concerns over immigration in Ballymena.
“Over the last number of months I’ve also been pressing the Executive Office about its spending under the much-trumpeted Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy.
“I am baffled that so much of the funding from this programme appears to have been awarded to councils for grants, rather than the primary agency responsible for crime prevention – the PSNI.
“I am glad to see the police have two people arrested and they are in custody but I’m very concerned that this attack took place on the doorstep of the station.
“The police need to be a visible presence within areas such as Clonavon to provide reassure to the public that this area of the town is safe.”