The Charlottesville Police Department charged a 15-year-old male with abduction and assault and battery Monday in relation to an attempted abduction that occurred on the 200 block of West Water Street the night of Oct. 29.
According to the initial report, the female victim was walking alone on West Water Street shortly past 8 p.m. when a male assailant “came up behind her, grabbed her and placed his hand over her mouth.” Following screams from the victim, the suspect fled the scene and remained at large for over a week.
Details surrounding his arrest remain unknown, and his name will not be released due to his age.
The suspect is currently being held at the Blue Ridge Juvenile Detention Center, where he will remain pending bond hearings, according to the press release.
This incident was the second attempted abduction in Charlottesville in a span of two days. The first was reported Oct. 27 and occurred around 2 a.m. on the 1100 block of Wertland Street. The suspect in this incident was characterized as a “white male with brown hair and a stocky build … wearing dark clothing.”
The University community was notified about both incidents through separate emails from University Chief of Police Michael Gibson shortly after the incidents were initially reported. The two attempted abductions were characterized similarly, though authorities believe the two are not connected because the descriptions of the two assailants suggested they were not the same race.
Police are still investigating the Wertland Street attack, and the suspect remains at large. Law enforcement encourages anyone with information surrounding this attack to contact the Charlottesville Police Department or call crime stoppers at 434-977-4000.