Abducted Simi Valley Teen Flees Attacker

Simi Valley police are searching for three males in connection with the kidnapping and sexual assault of a 17-year-old Royal High School student.

The victim, whose identity was not released, was walking home from school about 3:40 p.m. Monday near Royal and Crosby avenues when two males wearing ski masks grabbed her from behind, officials said. She told police they blindfolded her, carried her to a green imported sedan and drove off.

When the car stopped a short time later, the masked men got out, police said. Then the driver -- described as a Latino male in his late 20s, with a large, dark brown birthmark under his chin -- started to assault the girl, officials said. She put up a fight and escaped the vehicle, running to a relative’s home nearby.

This is the second daytime attack on a Simi Valley teenager reported in the last two months. On March 20, a 13-year-old girl was assaulted at noon while walking to a friend’s house through the alley behind a strip mall in the 600 block of Los Angeles Avenue. The attacker was described as 5 foot 8, with a medium build and wearing dark clothes with a hood.

Sgt. Joe May, a Simi Valley police spokesman, said there appeared to be no connection between the crimes. He cautioned everyone to be observant of their surroundings, avoid isolated areas and walk in groups when possible. Teens should tell parents or guardians where they are going and what route they will take and check in once they arrive, he said.

“Anybody can be a victim of a crime anywhere, whether you live in Los Angeles or in Simi Valley,” May said. “People shouldn’t be lulled into a sense of security that because they live in Ventura County they won’t experience a crime. They don’t need to live in fear, but just be cognizant of what’s going on around them. And remember to report not just crimes but things that look suspicious.”

Earlier this year, a Newbury Park woman narrowly avoided being robbed or kidnapped in Simi Valley. Mary Bagget, 27, was sitting in her car in a parking lot in the 1400 block of Madera Road about 6 p.m. Feb. 17 when a slender man with a shaved head and mustache approached holding a knife and told her to “move over.” Instead, she closed and locked her door and the man ran away.

Police also are still looking for a white male in his early 20s who sexually assaulted a 27-year-old mother in her Simi Valley home shortly before midnight Jan. 26. The man, described as 5 foot 8 to 5 foot 10, weighing 150 pounds, with spiked brown hair and blue-green eyes, threatened the woman with a hammer after breaking into her home.

Police believe the attacker, who was wearing a brown sweater with stripes and khaki pants, may have earlier posed as a solicitor in the area.