Edmonton police are hoping people in the area of Mill Woods will look at their security footage after police say a woman was sexually assaulted over the weekend.
Around 4:15 p.m. on Sunday, police said they responded to the area of 42 Street and 12 Avenue for reports of a sexual assault. It’s alleged a man was standing inside the tree line north of Crawford Plains School park and asked a woman in her 30s to come to him.
Police said when the woman approached the man, he attacked and sexually assaulted her. According to a news release, the woman was able to free herself and fled to people in the playground who provided her safety and contacted the Edmonton Police Service.
The man is described as being about 55 years old, about five feet six inches to five feet eight inches tall and about 150 pounds. Police said the suspect has a defined jaw, large nose, small eyes, thick eyebrows, grey stubble, a deep, raspy voice and is missing multiple front upper and lower teeth.
The suspect was wearing a white Molson Canadian beer store shirt, dark pants and a dark baseball cap at the time of the attack.
The principal of Crawford Plains School sent a letter home to families on Monday, making them aware of the police investigation.
“I wanted to let you know that the Edmonton Police Service is investigating an incident that occurred on our playground over the weekend. This incident did not occur during school hours and did not involve any of our students,” Lisa Nachtigal said.
“Safety of our students and staff has always been and continues to be our top priority. Children in our community may have seen police activity in our area and may ask you questions about it. As
your principal, I value open and honest communication with our school community, so I wanted to let you know what was going on.”
Nachtigal said the school is cooperating with police as they continue to investigate.
The EPS is asking people and business owners in the area to review their security camera footage and come forward to the police should they see anything unusual or something that matches the suspect’s description.
Anyone who was also driving in the area at the time and may have dashcam footage is also asked to contact police.
Edmonton police can be reached at 780-423-4567. Anonymous information can also be submitted to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or online.