Mounties have issued a warning directed at parents and teenagers after two girls were sexually assaulted on their way to school in Maple Ridge.

The assaults occurred just hundreds of metres apart on Thursday between 7:30 and 7:45 a.m., Ridge Meadows RCMP said.

The first victim was assaulted on 210th Street just north of Dewdney Trunk Road. The man approached her from behind and grabbed her buttocks then left without further incident, Sgt. Brenda Gresiuk said in a statement.

Minutes later, a second victim was assaulted in the same way at a bus stop on Dewdney Trunk near Laity Street, Mounties said.

The young teenage victims did not know each other, Gresiuk said. Both described similar assaults and a similar suspect.

The man has been described as Caucasian and in his early 20s. He is approximately six feet tall with a slim build, and was wearing a dark hoodie and jeans at the time.

The investigation is ongoing, and anyone with more information is asked to contact the RCMP at 604-463-6251.