Georgia authorities are stepping up patrols in a park in suburban Atlanta after a man grabbed and assaulted a woman pushing her child in a stroller.
Police in Alpharetta, Georgia said the woman managed to fight off her attacker at Wills Park last Tuesday morning.
“I’m just in shock because I come here with my kids and it's all little kids and families,” Perla Brito, who often goes to the park, told WSBTV.
Brito, like other mothers at the park Wednesday, said they were stunned to hear of the daytime assault along a park trail.
Police said the woman was approached by a man with a knife who pulled her off the trail.
“(He) forced her up against one of the building near the equestrian center, attempting to sexually assault the victim,” Alpharetta Public Safety Director John Robinson said.
“She elbowed and kicked and screamed just like she should have, and just did a fantastic job and because some folks ... were close by, he was not successful and fled the scene,” Robinson said.
Robinson said this is the first time he's heard of such an attack in an Alpharetta park. He said the parks are safe, and for the time being, they will get additional patrols as they look for the assailant.
Brito said the increased patrols made her feel a little safer.
“But I’m still not going to walk around there anymore,” she said.
Police said the mother had two cuts on her arm from the man's knife, but her child was not hurt in the incident.
Investigators now have a police sketch of the man and are asking the public for help in identifying him.
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