A suspect was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly sexually assaulting a woman as she was running near Tempe Town Lake with a friend.
Alfredo Morales Jr. is accused of grabbing the woman's genitals and buttocks multiple times, restraining her and chasing her and her friend while exposing himself and masturbating.
According to court documents, Morales was on the running path on the north side of Tempe Town Lake when the two women jogged past him.
The woman who was sexually assaulted later told police that she heard him say something that she believed was directed toward them.
Morales approached the woman and allegedly grabbed her genitals and buttocks and attempted to digitally penetrate her.
The woman later told police that she felt she was going to be "raped or physically injured" and that she was not only fearful for herself but her friend as well. She added that Morales was much stronger than her and she thought more harm would come if she didn't get away.
Morales then allegedly grabbed the woman's arm and pulled her closer, again preventing her from leaving.
The woman told police that the back-and-forth pulling went on for multiple minutes, with Morales allegedly grabbing her genitals and buttocks at least three times and grabbing her arms at least twice.
The woman was eventually able to push Morales away and she and her friend fled. Morales allegedly continued to follow the women, periodically pulling down his pants and masturbating. The women said Morales did that at least three times for about 20 seconds at a time.
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The women said they jumped a chain-link fence that separated the running path of Tempe Town Lake and the eastbound lanes of the Loop 202, ripping their pants.
According to the documents, Morales took off his hat and sweatshirt and continued to search for the women on the path. One of the women also told police that she called out to two people near Morales to warn them about him.
When a Tempe police officer attempted to arrest Morales, he allegedly ignored orders to stop and ran by the officer's fully-marked patrol car. Morales later said he did not stop because he didn't think the officers were talking to him.
Morales lived in a camp along Tempe Town Lake at the time of his arrest, court documents showed. He has prior convictions, including disorderly conduct, assault, and evading arrest.
Morales was arrested on two counts of kidnapping, one count of sexual abuse, two counts of public sexual indecency, two counts of criminal damage, two counts of assault and one count of resisting arrest.
He was denied bail due to being on felony release and is set to appear in court next on Dec. 10.
