Arlington Releases Suspect In Attacks

Arlington County police thought they might have caught the plastic-bag predator yesterday morning after the latest of four attacks in recent weeks, but the suspect was released shortly before noon.

The latest incident occurred about 1:20 a.m., near Lee Highway and Cleveland Street in Rosslyn.

Arlington Detective Steve Gomez said the woman had just arrived home when she heard a knock at her front door. She opened the door to find a man with a plastic bag in his hand. He lunged at her, she screamed and pushed him away, and the suspect fled on foot.

The woman called police, who set up a perimeter and shortly afterward took into custody a person matching the general description of the man from the latest incident.

Although he was released, he remains "a person of interest," Gomez said. Police are aware of at least three similar incidents since March.

On March 5, a woman was groped on North Key Boulevard about 9:45 p.m.

On April 16, a woman was walking to her car in the 1400 block of North Nash Street when a man tried to pull a plastic bag over her head.

On May 10, a man attempted to place a plastic bag over the head of a female pedestrian in the 4000 block of Washington Boulevard.

Gomez said the general description of the suspect remains the same after yesterday's incident: a black man, 20 to 35 years old, 5-10 to 6 feet tall, medium build, light to medium complexion. They do not know what the man's motivation is for the attacks.

Arlington police are encouraging women not to walk alone at night. If they must, they should stay in well-lighted areas and be aware of their surroundings, police said.

They are also encouraging any woman who is attacked to draw attention to herself by shouting or screaming.