Sexual Assault Near Woodfield Park Mirrors Previous 2020 Attacks

ALISO VIEJO, CA — A woman walking near Pacific Park Drive and Alicia Parkway was attacked late Saturday night, Orange County Sheriff's Department reported Sunday. The woman, in her 40s, was near Woodfield Park, a location where two women were attacked and sexually assaulted in 2020, according to OCSD spokesperson Sgt. Brad Hylton.

The Aliso Creek Trail is a 9.5 mile "moderately trafficked" out and back trail that runs between Lake Forest, Aliso Viejo and Rancho Santa Margarita in Orange County. It is also the site of at least 3 sexual assaults in the past year.

On Saturday night at approximately 11 p.m., the victim was "approached from behind by a suspect who grabbed her and dragged her into the bushes nearby Aliso Creek Trail," Hylton says. "She was unable to describe the suspect or what occurred after she was kidnapped and dragged into the bushes. At some point, she lost consciousness."

When she awoke after the attack, she was alone and called for help. She is cooperating fully with investigators.

The sexual assaults from 2020 mirror this attack in nature. The suspect attacked victims from behind, dragging them into the heavy brush off of the exercise path. Though Saturday's victim was unable to describe her assailant, the modus Operandi is similar enough in nature that OCSD is looking again for the former assailant. The 2020 attacker is around his mid-30s, with dark eyes and little-to-no hair, with a muscular build. He was last seen wearing a black shirt, black shorts, and tennis shoes.

On Sunday, deputies searched the area where the assault occurred, off Pacific Park Drive and Alicia Parkway, led by Special Victims Detail investigators.

Orange County Sheriff's Department says they will put extra patrols into place along the lengthy trail system, as they did the last time this occurred.

Following both incidents in 2020, the Orange County Sheriff's Department set up a task force in an attempt to identify and arrest the suspect, to no avail. Despite a concerted effort, the task force operations did not result in a suspect being identified at that time.

Investigators will analyze any DNA found at the scene to see if it matches previous sexual assaults in this area.

This is a developing report.

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