Longtime Stalker Slashes Woman on Way to College Class

A man who has been stalking a young woman for nearly three years grabbed her from behind and slashed her arm as she was walking to her music class at Orange Coast College, officials said Thursday.

The attacker, whom the victim recognizes but does not know by name, confronted her about 7 p.m. Wednesday between the Administration Building and Student Center, school spokesman Jim Carnett said.

The woman, a 20-year-old Anaheim resident, could not see what the sharp object was, authorities said. She struggled free and ran to class for help while the man fled into the parking lot. She received 12 stitches for the cut on her left upper arm.

School officials passed out flyers and put up posters Thursday morning to inform its estimated 28,000 pupils about the assault.

“We don’t feel that our students are at risk because this is an isolated incident where one person is targeted, but we felt our students should know,” Carnett said.

The victim now has a special parking space next to the security building and is being escorted from class to class, officials said.

The service was offered once before to the woman, Carnett said. In February, she reported that a substance that looked like blood was poured over the side of her car.

“But she really didn’t take advantage of the escort service at the time,” Carnett said.

The woman has also reported other incidents involving the same man to various police agencies throughout Orange County, Costa Mesa Police Sgt. Mike Millington said. He would not specify which cities and said information about other confrontations were not available.

The victim was still in high school when the man began following her in different cities and calling her at home, the college spokesman said.

“I know that he has been a relative thorn in her side,” Carnett said. “She has seen him in public and he has said things to her . . . expressing his infatuation with her, whatever.”

The man is wanted for assault with a deadly weapon and is described as white, 5 feet 11 and weighing between 165 to 180 pounds, police said. He has short dark hair, and during Wednesday’s attack wore all-black clothing with a black baseball cap.

The last reported assault on a woman by a man at Orange Coast College was Jan. 30. The victim reported then that a male, riding past her on a bicycle in a campus parking lot, reached out and grabbed one of her breasts.