2 Robbed, Sexually Assaulted by Gunman

Police were seeking a masked gunman Monday who robbed, kidnapped and sexually assaulted two young women.

The women were approached about 11:30 p.m. Sunday by a man wearing a ski mask and carrying a small semiautomatic handgun, said Officer Eduardo Funes of the Los Angeles Police Department.

After robbing the women of an undisclosed amount of money, the man forced the women into their car and directed them to a secluded area, where he sexually assaulted them, Funes said. The man then ordered the women to drive back to the scene of the robbery, where he fled from the car.

The victims, both in their 20s, were standing on private property, outside their car, near Kester Avenue and Magnolia Boulevard when the attack occurred, said Det. Carl Whiting of the LAPD’s Van Nuys Division.

He said the women were treated at a local hospital and released.

The man is described as African American, age 20 to 25, 5-foot-8 to 5-foot-9 and weighing 160 to 170 pounds.

Investigators do not think the incident is related to other recent kidnappings and assaults in Sherman Oaks, including two in February and March in which couples sitting in their cars were attacked, Whiting said.