A 14-year-old boy has been arrested in connection with a pair of sexual assaults that took place this summer in New Westminster, B.C.
The first assault was reported on July 4 in an apartment on Quayside Drive. Police say a male suspect followed a teenaged girl into her elevator, where he sexually assaulted her through her clothes. The suspect fled the scene, but investigators obtained surveillance footage from the building's security camera.
The second assault occurred shortly after midnight on August 5 in the 800-block of Queens Avenue. A 20-year-old woman was dragged into the bushes near a tennis court, but managed to fight off her attacker who then fled the scene on foot.
New Westminster Police later picked up a teenaged male suspect nearby and took him into custody. Investigators believe he is responsible for both attacks.
RCMP investigators are recommending charges of sexual assault, forcible confinement and break and enter.
The 14-year-old, who is from Surrey but can't be identified because of his age, appeared in court briefly on Thursday afternoon. He said very little and will remain in custody at least until his next appearance on Tuesday.
He has been charged with sexual assault, forcible confinement and break and enter.
Meanwhile, a number of other sex assaults cases in Metro Vancouver remain unsolved.
In Surrey, RCMP continue to search for the man who assaulted a six-year-old girl.
"We're still obviously pursuing this very vigorously," said RCMP Sgt. Roger Morrow.
That suspect is still nothing more then a rough sketch, but his DNA is a match with two cases dating back to 2007 in Delta and 1995 in Vancouver.
Meanwhile Vancouver police are still looking for leads in the case of 13-year-old girl, who was dragged from a bus and assaulted at knife point.
With a report by Sarah Galashan and files from The Canadian Press
