Their voices were calm. Neither man feared public places. Both acted violently in full daylight.
That’s why Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office officials believe the two men are likely one and the same.
| If you have car trouble on the road, raise the hood and wait inside the car with the doors locked and the windows up. If someone stops to help, crack your window slightly and ask him or her to call 911.
* If you think you are being followed, do not go home. Head immediately for the nearest lighted area where there are other people. * Stay a safe distance away from strangers to avoid abduction. * Vary your route and schedule so you don’t follow a distinct pattern. Know where you can go for help. * Be confident. Make quick eye contact with strangers to show control over yourself and your environment. Rapists tend to target people who look frightened, lost, distracted or easily intimidated. * Fighting off an attacker is usually a last resort. Source: Washington State Crime Prevention Association |
The sheriff’s office on Tuesday released the sketch of a man who is suspected of attempting to sexually assault a 26-year-old woman in Lake Stevens on Friday while she was stranded on the side of the road with a flat tire.
The woman’s description of the attack is similar to the account of a 14-year-old Snohomish girl, who said a man grabbed her as she walked alone about two weeks ago.
Investigators don’t have enough evidence to say that a rapist is on the prowl. However, sheriff’s office spokesman Rich Niebusch said people should be careful.
“You’ve got to be careful about what people’s motives are, especially people who are trying to help,” Niebusch said. “I’m not trying to take away from good Samaritans, but as a sign of our times, not everyone can be trusted.”
The Lake Stevens woman and the Snohomish girl described their alleged attackers as black, 6 feet tall, muscular and in his 20s or 30s. The Lake Stevens woman said the man was bald and was wearing old, ratty clothes. The Snohomish girl said he had short hair.
The man may have shaved his head after a different sketch of him appeared in newspapers last week, Niebusch said.
The suspects’ mannerisms may be more telling.
In Snohomish, the girl told police a man grabbed her as she walked down Avenue D at about 4:45 p.m. and tried to coerce her to go home with him. She freed herself using a martial arts move, and the man walked away after a passing driver yelled at him, the girl said.
Then on Friday, the woman was stranded with a flat tire at the intersection of South Davies Road and South Lake Stevens Road when a man pulled up in an old, copper-colored Volkswagen bug. He grabbed her by the hair, kicked her legs out from under her, knocked her onto her back and placed his knee on her chest. He said he’d change her tire in exchange for a sexual favor. She started screaming, and he left.
In both incidents, the suspect approached each victim casually before turning aggressive. Even then, his voice remained calm.
“This person is using more aggressive tactics in subsequent assaults,” Niebusch said.
People shouldn’t panic, Niebusch said. It’s too early to tell whether the two incidents are connected.
Just in case, it doesn’t hurt to be cautious, he said.
“These happened about 10 days apart,” Niebusch said. “The fact that he’s doing this in an open environment shows he’s not overly concerned.”
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