Pleasanton Sex Assault Suspect Impersonates Cop
Police said the assault was reported several weeks after the Aug. 5 attack.
Pleasanton police are hoping to find a man accused of impersonating a police officer while he allegedly committed a sexual assaault earlier this month.
Pleasanton police are hoping to find a man accused of impersonating a police officer while he allegedly committed a sexual assaault earlier this month.
Sgt. Maria Munayer said Tuesday that the assault was reported several weeks after the Aug. 5 attack.
That's when a woman said she was driving on Valley Avenue at Bernal Avenue about 3 a.m. when she heard what sounded like the chirp of a siren.
After seeing a flash of light coming from some type of four-door sedan behind her, the driver believed she was being stopped by a law enforcement officer.
She told police that she pulled over in a secluded area to the side of the road on Valley Avenue south of Bernal Avenue.
The woman told police that the man approached the driver’s side door and showed the her a star shaped badge in his hand. He ordered her out of her car and handcuffed her, Munayer said. She was then placed in the back seat of the his vehicle and driven a short distance away, to an unknown secluded dirt or gravel road, where she was sexually assaulted by the suspect in his vehicle, police said.
The man left the woman at the scene, police said, and drove away. The victim walked back to her vehicle and drove home.
The suspect is described as a white man standing almost 6 feet tall and weighing about 185 pounds. He is in his late 20s or early 30s, has dark brown or black hair and is muscular. The woman said he wore a dark button-down shirt with no police insignia and wore a dark police-style hat with a patent leather brim.
Police wanted to remind the public that:
- Law enforcement officers are required to have a solid, steady, front-facing, red light when they are conducting a traffic stop. You are not required by law to stop if you do not see a solid red light.
- If you are being pulled over, slow down, put on your blinker and drive to a well lit and populated area before you stop.
- Call 911 if you are concerned about the legitimacy of the traffic stop. The 911 dispatcher can confirm whether the traffic stop is legitimate or will send officers to investigate.
- Anyone with information about this incident or the identity of the suspect is urged to contact the Pleasanton Police Department at (925) 931-5100.
