TORONTO — Police are asking the public for help in identifying a suspect linked to four sexual assaults in Newmarket, Ont.
York Regional police said the first incident occurred on Aug. 18 just before 6 p.m. when a 19-year-old woman was walking down a pathway at the Upper Canada Mall parking lot near Yonge Street and Davis Drive.
Police said she walked past a man on the trail, near Gail Parks Crescent, who then turned around, ran up behind her and grabbed her buttocks.
The woman then fled from the suspect and climbed a fence into the mall parking lot. She did not suffer any physical injuries.
On Sept. 8, a similar incident occurred when a 34-year-old woman was walking on a sidewalk near the same mall from Matthew Boyd Crescent at about 7:30 a.m., when she stopped to send a text message and a man allegedly approached her from behind and grabbed her buttocks.
In a third incident that same day at about 2:30 p.m., a 17-year-old girl was walking north from the same mall into a subdivision on Gail Park Crescent when she was approached by a man wearing a hooded sweatshirt, with the hood concealing his face.
The suspect grabbed the girl’s buttocks, then ran towards the residential area.
On Sept. 25 at about 9:30 a.m., police responded to a report that a man allegedly approached an 18-year-old woman walking on Aspenwood Drive, pushed her to the ground and attempted to remove her clothing.
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A passerby interrupted the assault and the suspect ran away. The woman did not suffer any serious physical injuries.
Police have described the suspect as a white man aged 20 to 25 years old standing 5’5″ and weighing 125 to 130 pounds.
Police said he had a thin build and was wearing a hooded sweatshirt and pants.
Investigators believe the suspect is targeting small-statured, thin women who may be distracted by using their phones or listening to music on their headphones.
Anyone with information is asked to call the York Regional Police Special Victims Unit – Sexual Assault Section at 1-866-876-5423, ext. 7071, or contact Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-TIPS, or leave an anonymous tip online at http://www.1800222tips.com, or text your tip to CRIMES (274637) starting with the word YORK.
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