Police: Woman Sexually Assaulted On Beach While Male Companion Is Forced To Lie Face-Down

MANHATTAN BEACH (CBSLA.com) — A woman was sexually assaulted early Sunday morning while the suspect forced her male companion to lie face-down in the sand on Manhattan Beach, according to police.

The attack took place just after midnight, several blocks south of Rosecrans Avenue in the 3400 block of the beach, according to Manhattan Beach police Sgt. Andrew Enriquez. The man and woman, both in their 40s, were sitting in the sand when the suspect approached them, and simulated the use of a handgun.

Following the assault, the suspect fled south with unspecified property (possibly a cell phone) belonging to the man and woman, Enriquez said. A search ensued, but the suspect was not located, and the matter has been turned over to Manhattan Beach police detectives.

CBS2's Greg Mills said area residents were shocked when they heard the news of the assault.

Residents were told of the crime in an email blast from police.

"It makes me sick to my stomach, to be honest," said Angela Nelson.

"She wasn't by herself  and it still happened," said Lauren Dibbs, "that has to be one of the most frightening aspects of it."

KCAL9's Cristy Fajardo on Sunday evening spoke to area residents who said they would not be deterred by the attack.

"What are you going to do?," one man said, "there's crazy people out there."

Another resident said he lived in the area for three decades and wasn't going to change the way he lived.

"I've been a resident here over 30 years," he said, "I'm not going to do anything different. It's a very safe city."

Anyone with information on the assault is asked to contact Manhattan Beach Police at (310) 802-5140.

(©2015 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)