Police: Female Jogger Sexually Assaulted in the Baylands

Written by Claudia Cruz.

Palo Alto Police hopes to speak with two bicyclists who may have witnessed when a man groped a female jogger in the Baylands Sunday morning.

The woman in her 30s neared the Palo Alto Golf Course around 10:50 a.m. when the suspect jumped her. As the bicyclists approached the suspect fled.

According to Detective Sergeant Brian Philip of the PAPD, the victim—who ran the loop around the Palo Alto Baylands Nature Preserve, the Palo Alto Airport and the Palo Alto Golf Course—first noticed that the suspect began to follow her when entered the trail after she crossed the East Palo Alto bridge.

The man jogged behind her for three miles and got "close enough to her to make her feel uncomfortable," Det. Philip said in a statement issued to the press. Even if the jogger stopped, the suspect never passed the jogger.

When the victim neared the Baylands Athletic Center, she told cops that the suspect "jumped on her back" from behind.

"She believed he was attempting to take her to the ground, but she was able to keep her balance and stay on her feet," Philip said. "The suspect groped her sexually over her clothing as she struggled with him. The victim successfully pushed him away....The victim was not injured."

At this time two bicyclists approached them on the path and the suspect fled northbound on the trail over the bridge into East Palo Alto. The bicyclists stopped to check on the victim and then left the area.
Officers arrived on scene about four minutes after the call came into dispatch, "and despite an extensive search of the area, were unable to locate the suspect."

Another female witness in her 40s told officers that the same suspect allegedly  also followed her along the same stretch of trail where this crime occurred earlier that morning.

The victim described the suspect as a Hispanic or Hispanic/black biracial male, about 20 years old, possibly 5 feet 8 inches tall and 160 pounds. He had black "buzzed" hair and was clean shaven. He had clear-colored studded earrings in both ears. He was wearing long blue shorts, a plain white T-shirt, and white tennis shoes.

The PAPD asks anyone with information to call their 24-hour dispatch center at 650-329-2413. Anonymous tips can be e-mailed to paloalto@tipnow.org or sent via text message or voice mail to 650-383-8984.