Three girls sexually assaulted by man on bike near Vancouver seawall: VPD

Aug 18 2021, 11:43 pm

Police are investigating after three girls were allegedly sexually assaulted earlier this week near False Creek.

Two separate incidents were reported within the span of 30 minutes, the first of which happened on Tuesday at 4:30 pm.

Police say that two girls, both 11-years-old, were walking near the Seawall. An unknown man passed them on a bike and allegedly groped one of the females from behind. It’s believed that the suspect followed the female victims to the area of West 6th Avenue and Birch Street and groped the second girl as well.

Approximately 30 minutes later, a 15-year-old girl was running on the Seawall near Science World. She was also reportedly groped by a stranger, although it’s unclear at this point whether the incidents were linked.

The Vancouver Police Department (VPD) says that the suspect from Granville Island was a 5’4″ Asian man in his 30s. He’s described as having medium-coloured skin and black-framed glasses and wore a blue hat, a grey t-shirt, and dark shorts at the time of the incident. The suspect also appeared “unkempt” and was riding a red and white bike.

The suspect from the incident at Science World is described as having dark hair, a dark ball cap, a grey t-shirt, light-coloured or grey pants, and a dark backpack. He was also riding a red and white bike.

VPD says that they don’t know whether the two incidents are linked, but investigators believe there may be other victims who haven’t yet stepped forward.

“These girls were all near the seawall when a stranger on a bike grabbed them from behind and sexually assaulted them,” says Sergeant Steve Addison, VPD in a statement. “Each victim did the right thing by telling a trusted adult and reporting the incidents to police so an investigation could be launched immediately.”

Addison says that they’re working hard to gather evidence and identify the person or people responsible.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the VPD’s Sex Crime Unit at 604-717-0601.

Vincent PlanaVincent Plana

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