San Diego Police may have arrested a man responsible for two home invasion robberies and sex assault in Carmel Valley.
At a community meeting, packed with concerned residents, Captain Kathleen Healey said a suspect was arrested Thursday afternoon for drug possession. He is also being considered a "person of interest" in the robberies.
"The only thing that leads us to believe he could be the guy is his physical description," Capt. Healey said.
The man drew suspicion from a detective at Northwestern Division. Captain Healey said the detective remembered the man from a previous unrelated case.
Officers went to the man's home on Carmel View Road at 2 p.m. and arrested him for drug possession. That’s the same road where an intruder attacked a woman armed with a knife this week. Police said the suspect entered through an open garage door, tied up the victim and sexually assaulted her. The suspect then took the victim's wallet and left.
On February 10, a suspect committed a similar crime on Whispering Hills Lane, a few miles from Carmel View Road. The victim in that case was not sexually assaulted.
Investigators believe the same suspect committed both crimes. In both cases, they said the victims are Asian and may have been targeted because of their ethnicity.
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"They're very traumatized which I would expect," said Captain Healey. "It's frightening for someone to enter your home especially armed with a knife."
Investigators will show the person of interest to the victims in a photo line-up. Detectives said if he is identified as the robbery suspect, he will be charged with those crimes. If he is not identified then police will put together a composite sketch, which could be released as early as Friday.
