Man sought for the beating and assault of a woman in South Lake Tahoe

A woman was violently beat up early Thursday morning in South Lake Tahoe by an unknown man who is still on the loose.

At around 2:00 a.m., the suspect walked up to the area of a motel room on Cedar Avenue, where a group of several friends were socializing in and around the room. No one in this group of friends knew the suspect.

In order to use her phone, a woman separated herself a small distance from the group to an area out of view of her friends. The suspect grabbed her and threatened her with a knife. Compelling her silence with the knife, the suspect forced the victim to a secluded area where he beat her violently and attempted to sexually assault her.

The victim was able to escape from the suspect during the assault and ran back to the motel room. The suspect chased after her, but when the friends came to help the bleeding victim, he fled east on foot, in the direction of the state line.

Police responded immediately and searched for the suspect but were unable to locate him. The victim was transported to Barton Hospital, and then transferred to Reno for medical assistance. The extent and nature of her injuries are currently being medically assessed, however, SLTPD has confirmed the victim was not stabbed. Detectives have canvassed the area and have found no one able to identify the suspect as of this time. The search of the area is continuing today.

Because information is still being collected, and due also to necessary delays of a medical nature, the current suspect description is somewhat vague. A composite sketch may follow later.

As of this time, the police want to make our community aware for public safety reasons and are asking for community help in identifying, locating and arresting the suspect. He is described as:

Hispanic Male Adult of 18-22 years of age
Heavy set, with a noticeable belly
About 5’-4”to 5’-6” with short cut black hair
Clean shaven and has a deep voice
Wearing an unknown color T shirt and khaki colored shorts

Any helpful information related to this investigation can be forwarded to the South Lake Tahoe Police Department at 530-542-6100 or to South Lake Tahoe Secret Witness at 530-541-6800.