Suspect posing as maintenance worker sought in assault cases

San Diego Police Department Sex Crimes Unit detectives are investigating two recent residential burglaries that also involved assaults upon the female residents.

The most recent occurred July 14 at about 8 p.m. in Pacific Beach when a man claiming to be a maintenance employee of the victim’s Pacific Beach townhouse complex told the victim he needed to shut off the water to her residence and check the water pressure in her sinks, according to an SDPD press release.

The report also said, “Suspicious of the suspect, the victim followed him upstairs and waited outside the bathroom as he turned on the faucets and opened the cabinets. The suspect told the victim to remove all the items from under the sink. As she knelt over to see what the suspect was referring to, he immediately began punching her in the side of the face. The victim screamed and fought back until he ran out of the home.”

A similar incident was reported on May 13 in Golden Hill.

The suspect is described as a Hispanic male between 28-35 years of age, 5’8” to 6’0” with a heavy build and “beer belly.” He was wearing a T-shirt and jeans in each case. The male spoke Spanish to one of the victims and the other described him as speaking with an accent.

Anyone with information concerning this case is asked to contact the San Diego Police Department Sex Crimes Unit at (619) 531-2210 or San Diego County Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477.