At a community meeting held Wednesday night, SFPD announced that the city is offering a $25,000 reward to catch the man responsible for two sexual assaults in San Francisco’s Mission District.
According to the Chron, hundreds of people attended last night’s meeting at St. James Catholic Church to discuss what police believe is a serial rapist targeting women on 24th Street.
A woman was sexually assaulted and beaten after a man followed her down 24th Street from South Van Ness Avenue to Potrero Avenue sometime between 3 a.m. and 4 a.m. on November 18, police said.
SFPD believes that this same man was responsible for a sexual assault and robbery at around 6 AM on Thursday December 8 at 24th and Fair Oaks streets.
According to a friend of the victim, who spoke at the meeting, the victim was “walking to the 24th Street BART station at the time of the attack and was hoping to get in a quick workout at the gym before work.”
According to Mission Local, SFPD Commander Michael Biel said Wednesday that “The attacks keep getting worse…We have someone who is very dangerous to the community.”
According to tweets from the meeting, and reported by Mission Local, Biel announced a $25,000 reward for information leading to the capture and conviction of the assailant.
A call by the Appeal to SFPD seeking more information on this reward was not returned at publication time.
As you can see in the video above, SFPD has also released the surveillance footage of the man they believe to be the sexual assailant.
The suspect is described as a black man in his mid-30s with a medium to light complexion standing between 5 feet 9 inches and 6 feet tall. He has a round, clean-shaven face, large eyes, a round nose and thick lips, police said.
In the first attack, he was wearing athletic apparel including a light gray hoodie with a front zipper, blue cotton running pants and tennis shoes, possibly in shades of black and white, according to police. He was wearing a black hoodie and dark pants in the second attack, police said.
Anyone with information is urged to contact SFPD’s anonymous tip line at (415) 575-4444. Tips may also be texted to TIP444 from a mobile phone, with “SFPD” at the beginning of the message.
Anyone wishing to donate to the victims can bring checks, made out to the 24th Street Survivors Fund, to Sterling Bank and Trust at 3800 24th St.
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