Arrest Made In Sexual Assault Case After Sketch, Photos Released

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — A suspect who was sought in connection with a series of sexual assaults in San Jacinto has been arrested.

Luis Perales, 23, of Hemet was arrested Thursday by Riverside County Sheriff's deputies at his place of employment on suspicion of committing sexual assaults over the course of five months, according to the Riverside County Sheriff's Department.

Officials said that in each instance of the alleged crimes, Perales would assault a victim on their morning walk along Esplanade Avenue between Villines Avenue and Arroyo Viejo Drive, then run into a nearby neighborhood south of Esplanade.

He was booked into the Byrd Detention Center in Murrieta and held on $250,000 bail. Perales' initial court date was not immediately available on jail records.

Earlier this month, the sheriff's department released a composite sketch and surveillance images of a suspect in the case.

"During the course of this investigation, personnel from the Hemet Station Investigations Bureau conducted surveillance and follow-up regarding the identity of the suspect," the sheriff's department reported. "They received information the suspect involved in the assaults was Luis Perales ... ."

—City News Service contributed to this report.