In Berkeley, police have issued a warning and released images of a suspect linked to three sexual assaults in the last week. All of the victims have been Asian women assaulted near UC Berkeley.
Berkeley Police Release Video of Possible Suspect in Series of Sexual Assaults
On Thursday, the Berkeley Police Department released video of a man identified as a possible suspect in three sexual assault cases targeting college-aged Asian women. In one of the assaults, the suspect violently knocked the woman to the ground and forcibly grabbed her from behind.
Here are two versions of the surveillance video, at regular speed and slowed down:
The first attack took place Thursday, February 11 at 9:10pm on Haste Street at People's Park. A 21-year-old UC Berkeley student was grabbed from behind, pushed to the ground and sexually assaulted.
On Tuesday, February 16, a woman in her 20s was sexually assaulted shortly after 11:00pm at the intersection of Dwight Way and Benvenue Avenue, less than a block from the park.
About twenty minutes later, the suspect attacked a third woman on Benvenue Avenue. The man reportedly approached her from behind and "used a bear hug to restrain" her "and then sexually assaulted her." Police said the victim in that incident chased the suspect through campus housing.
The suspect is described as a black or East Indian man in his early 20s, 5-foot-9 inches to 6 feet tall, with dark curly hair or dreadlocks pulled back, wearing a dark-colored jacket and pants, and a hooded sweatshirt.
Anyone with information regarding these assaults is asked to call the Berkeley Police Department's Special Victims Unit at 510-981-5735. For crimes in progress, call 911. Callers who wish to remain anonymous can call Bay Area Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477.
More here: Asian women targeted in 3 sexual assaults near UC Berkeley; police release video, ask public for help
