British schoolgirls molested by sex attacker at their hostel in France

The man caressed their necks and arms for up to 30 minutes while they slept. The girls - aged 13 and 14 - found out what was happening only when a friend woke up and screamed.

The incident has chilling echoes of the murder of Caroline Dickinson in 1996. The 13-year-old was raped and suffocated at another youth hostel 100 miles away in Brittany.

Incredibly, the culprit in the latest case has been released on bail after being charged with indecent assault.

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The decision by a French judge has prompted some members of the school party to fear he could strike again. They are also angry that a hostel employee gave the

attacker a key to the girls' room.

One said: 'Everyone is well aware of what happened to Caroline and we did everything we could to keep them safe - but what can you do if someone is simply given a key?'

The victims - who have not been named - were among 50 pupils and teachers from Kingsbridge Community College in Devon visiting the Loire-Atlantique resort of Saint BrËvin les Pins.

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The girls were staying in a fourbed dormitory at the PinËde Youth Hostel when the attacker crept into their room at around 4am on Sunday.

According to a French police spokesman, the attacker spent 'up to half an hour' caressing two of the girls' necks and the hand of a third. He fled when the fourth girl woke up.

'This was a very sinister, unpleasant incident', the spokesman said. A senior police officer said the judge who bailed the suspect in nearby St Nazaire had been given a psychiatrist's report stating that he was not a danger to society.

The officer added: 'In any case he will be under constant surveillance and will have to report regularly to the police.'

The 24-year-old had been camping next to the hostel.

Nicolas Routhier, who runs the hostel, said the employee who gave the man a key had been dismissed. He could not explain why the individual had handed over the key.

Roger Pope, the school's headmaster, said: 'This is an extremely distressing incident and the girls were shocked but thankfully unharmed.

'College staff and the staff from the hostel reacted immediately and we are all very grateful to the French police for apprehending the perpetrator so quickly.

'I have spoken to the parents of the girls involved and, in consultation with the students, we have decided they should continue their holiday. We have informed all of the parents of students on the trip about what has happened.'

Mick Philips, a teacher with the party in France, said: 'We were very aware of what happened to

poor Caroline in 1996 and we have been very vigilant about security. We arrived on the Friday night and this happened on the Saturday night. We are due to leave France at the end of this week. It was a nasty incident but the girls are okay and that is the main thing.'

The murder of Caroline in Pleine FougËres threw a harsh spotlight on tourism in a part of France traditionally considered very safe for children.

She was in a party of 40 pupils and five teachers also on an end- of-term school trip and also staying at a youth hostel.

In the early hours of July 18, Francisco Arce Montes entered the building - probably through a door which had been left unlocked - put his hand over her mouth, raped her and then suffocated her

The former waiter from northern Spain was convicted of murder in 2004 and sentenced to 30 years behind bars.