A man was arrested in the sexual assault of a homeless woman who was sleeping on a sidewalk outside a business in the San Fernando Valley, according to Los Angeles police.
The woman was sleeping outside a Sepulveda Boulevard business, under a security camera and light, when she was attacked at about 2:30 a.m. in Van Nuys.
Warning: The video below contains disturbing images.
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“It’s a pretty brazen attack,” said LAPD detective Jeff Briscoe. “It’s likely he’s done it before.
“She was sound asleep under a fully lit canopy.”
Video showed the woman in what appears to be a sleeping bag when the man approached. She tried to push him away and took out a cell phone.
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That’s when the man lunged at her with his pants down. Briscoe she the woman fought off the man, kicking him and swinging at him with an empty bucket.
About nine minutes later, the man returned wearing only a shirt, socks and underpants.
“This time, he’s removed his shoes and his pants, and he exposes himself, and attempts to have an unwanted sexual encounter with the victim,” Briscoe said.
The man appeared to have distinctive tattoos, including cross on the back of his neck.
Details about the arrest of the 30-year-old suspect were not immediately available. A news conference is scheduled for 1 p.m. Friday.
Police responded to at least five similar cases involving homeless people in the last year, the LAPD said.
