A man fitting the description for the two sexual assaults on women and one attempted assault since Sept. 21 in the area of the Dunn Loring Metro Station, entered a woman's apartment in the same area Sunday morning and assaulted her, according to police reports.
Around 4:15 a.m., a 26-year-old woman woke up to find a man in her bedroom, said police. She successfully fought him off, and he fled. Police said he had entered the apartment, near the intersection of Park Tower Drive and Gallows Road, through an unlocked door on a second-floor deck.
The woman received minor injuries, which did not require medical treatment.
The attacker has been described as a black male in his 20s, 5 feet 2 inches to 5 feet 6 inches tall, with a medium build.
At the scene of the first assault, he discarded a T-shirt with "Divers Club, Puerto Vallarta Mexico" on the logo. At the scene of Sunday's assault, a jacket was left behind, along with a hockey puck with "Witchita Falls Rustlers Hockey" on the logo. Police are hoping someone recognizes one or more of the items.
IN THE WAKE of the first three attacks, the Fairfax County Police Department held a meeting last Thursday to discuss what residents can do to make their community safer.
Between 40 and 50 community members came together in the cafeteria of nearby Stenwood Elementary School to listen to a police presentation and ask questions of the officers as well as Metro Officer Raymond Bond and Providence District Supervisor Linda Smyth.
"It's about reducing the opportunity to commit a crime against you," said Patrick Lucas, crime prevention officer for the McLean District Police Station, who presented the safety seminar. He drew a triangular diagram on the board, explaining that the three sides — target, desire and opportunity — interact for each situation and perpetrator. Since the public can do nothing to influence the rapist's desire to commit the crime, it is up to members of the public to protect themselves by reducing opportunity and making themselves harder targets to hit, said Lucas.
Serial rapists are like predatory animals, Lucas said. They are territorial, sticking to areas where they live or work or have lived or worked in the past.
Police believe the same person has struck four times in the last month. The first assault took place as a woman was cutting through to Stenwood Elementary School grounds on her way home from the Metro on Sept. 21. The second and third attacks happened on Friday, Oct. 7. The first victim on Oct. 7 was walking home on a dedicated path between the Park Towers and Merrifield at Dunn Loring Station complexes when the attacker grabbed her. She screamed and fought him off, causing him to run away. However, as the police were on the path investigating the assault, the attacker sexually assaulted another woman cutting through another path in the same apartment complex.
"It's the shortcuts this person is going after," said Officer Tom Black, a crime prevention specialist.The officers stressed that women, and men, too, should stay engaged with their environment and stick to well-lighted areas.
The police indicated that they have been getting a number of reports of suspicious persons and vehicles in the area, most of which have not turned up additional information for the investigation. However, Black said that often community members do not call the police because they do not want to bother them with the reports.
"Please, bother us. We want to get this guy," said Black. "There is a lot of manpower being involved in this whole thing."
The officers also asked community members in the Park Towers condominium complex that borders the dark, wooded buffer zones between developed areas to turn on their back lights for the safety of those passing.
"We will provide the light bulbs," joked Lucas. "I will give you the $2 you'd spend a year on electricity."
Providence District Supervisor Linda Smyth repeated from her discussion with the chief of Fairfax County Police that this case is the police force's top priority.
ALTHOUGH POLICE DO not know when the rapist selects his targets, the first three women were users of the Metro system.
Officer Bond spoke of the improvements and repairs Metro is making to ensure patrons' safety on their grounds. A main focus of the repairs has been replacing burned-out light bulbs and ensuring enough light reaches the dark spots on the Dunn Loring Metro property.
None of the assaults have taken place on Metro property.
Officer Bud Walker of the police Public Information Office said there is no reason to believe that the most recent victim even uses the Metro. "We don't want anyone to have a false sense of security because they don't use the Metro," he said.
"The number one thing people can do to protect themselves is to be aware of their surroundings," said Walker. He said this means looking over one's shoulder, being aware of other people and noticing objects such as bushes in which someone could hide.
Meanwhile, said Walker, "since Oct. 7, our patrol has been using saturation patrol techniques to blanket the Merrifield area."
The public is urged to call Crime Solvers at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477) or the police non-emergency number at 703-691-2131 with any information about the incidents or suspects. Callers may remain anonymous.