PORTLAND, Maine — The Portland Police Department on Wednesday asked for assistance from the public in identifying a man who reportedly assaulted three women in the same area within the past six weeks.
Between April 20 and May 27, three women between the ages of 26 and 30 told police a man grabbed them from behind while they walked alone in the area of Congress Street between Neal Street and Weymouth Street, according to a news release from Portland police Lt. James Sweatt.
Police seek a white man, about 30 years old, 5-foot-7 to 6 feet tall, “heavy set” and “with a rugged frame,” with long blonde hair and two more lip piercings.
The suspect wears a baseball hat and glasses, according to Sweatt, and may live in or frequent the area.
At 9 p.m. April 30, a 29-year-old homeless woman told police a man grabbed her around the neck in a rear alley behind 169 Neal St., then grabbed money she concealed in her bra and fled.
At 11:30 p.m. May 24, a 30-year-old Portland woman reported a man grabbed her by the neck from behind on Weymouth Street near Congress Street, put his hands around her neck and took her bra.
In a third instance, on May 27 police located a third alleged victim, a 26-year-old Portland woman who then reported being assaulted at 8 p.m. April 20 on Congress Street near Weymouth Street, Sweatt said. The woman told police the man walked up behind her and grabbed her buttocks. After she sprayed him with pepper spray, he ran east on Grant Street.
Police have added patrols and searches in the area but have not located any suspects, Sweatt said.
Police ask anyone who witenssed the assaults or is familiar with someone who matches the suspect’s description to contact them at 874-8575, portland-police.com or by sending an anonymous text message with the keyword “GOTCHA” to 274637 (CRIMES).