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SALT LAKE CITY — A man who police say sexually assaulted a jogger apparently didn't expect the woman to not only fight back, but chase after him as he ran away.
Salt Lake police on Tuesday announced they were looking for a man who groped a woman while jogging. The incident happened about 6 a.m. Friday near 1700 South and 500 East.
A woman in her 40s was jogging when she noticed a man crossing the street and heading toward her. The man then came up to the woman from behind and grabbed her, said Salt Lake police detective Greg Wilking.
"Fortunately in this situation, our female jogger fought back," he said.
The jogger was armed with a small knife, already in her hand, and starting stabbing her attacker in the leg, chest and arms, according to police.
"He may have small wounds to his torso. That's where we believe most of the impact was," Wilking said.
The man tried to run off, but the woman continued to chase after him.
"She had that mental plan in place not to be a victim," the detective said.
The man ran to a bus stop near 520 E. 1700 South, leading investigators to believe that he may live in the area. But he continued running again when the woman came after him. She eventually turned around to go home and call police.
The woman was not injured. As of Tuesday, Wilking said police had not received any reports of a man matching the attacker's description showing up at a hospital with puncture or stab wounds.
The man is described as Caucasian, between 15 and 30 years old, about 5 feet 9 inches tall, 150 pounds, "clean cut" and "fit." He was last seen wearing a gray sweatshirt and carrying a backpack.
Blood off the knife used in the attack was being processed for DNA, Wilking said. As of Tuesday, police were not aware of any other similar attacks.
Although Wilking said carrying a knife while jogging is a little extreme, he encourages anyone out at night or when it's dark to "be prepared and aware of their surroundings."
"We're happy that it turned out well for her," he said.
Anyone with information on the attack can call police at 801-799-3000.
