Sketch of Battlefield assault suspect released

By Elisa Glushefski

Published: August 21, 2008

Prince William police on Tuesday released a composite sketch of the man who sexually assaulted a woman at Manassas National Battlefield this week.

A 25-year-old Fairfax County woman, who was not injured, called 911 from her cell phone around 12:10 p.m. Tuesday and told police that a man attacked her on a Battlefield path about a half-mile from the Stone Bridge that crosses Bull Run at the Fairfax/Prince William County line, said 1st Sgt. Kim Chinn, police spokeswoman.

Police said the woman was hiking and had stopped to rest when a man armed with a knife grabbed her by the wrist.

The assailant then inappropriately touched her and tried to drag her off the trail, police said, but she fled and screamed.

The woman told police he ran toward the park parking lot off U.S. 29 in Fairfax County, Chinn said.

The assailant was described as a Latino man, in his 20s, between 5 feet 5 inches and 5 feet 6 inches tall, 150 pounds, with a baled or shaved head and brown eyes, police said. He was wearing white shorts with a blue plaid design, a black shirt with a large white design and white tennis shoes.

For several hours battlefield police searched the park on horseback and Prince William patrol officers searched nearby areas, but no one matching that description was found, Chinn said.

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call Prince William County Crime Solvers at 1-866-411-TIPS.

Staff writer Elisa Glushefski can be reached at 703-878-8062.