FAYETTEVILLE -- Police were searching Monday for a man who a runner says attacked her Sunday afternoon on the Lake Fayetteville Trail.
April Robertson, 27, of Springdale reported the assault at 2:22 p.m. Sunday during what is normally a busy time of day on the heavily trafficked public trail.
Fayetteville Police Sgt. Craig Stout said, while police have responded to incidents on the city's trail system before, a violent attack in broad daylight is "very rare."
"For something like this to be just a random attack on the trail, it's a very uncommon occurrence," Stout added. "We want to reassure the public that we have our investigators on it trying to track down this person."
Matt Mihalevich, Fayetteville trails coordinator, said an infrared trail counter showed more than 1,200 people passed a spot on the north end of the Lake Fayetteville Trail on Sunday.
He called the attack "really surprising considering the amount of use we have."
Robertson told police she passed a man walking on the trail north of the Botanical Garden of the Ozarks -- near the "Copperhead Crossing" bridge over Clear Creek.
The man started running after her, and, when she turned to look at him over her shoulder, he put his arms around her neck and tackled her to the ground, she told police. He punched her in the face, told her to stop screaming, put his hand over her mouth and dragged her into a wooded area.
Robertson said, once they were in the woods, the man let go of her. She said the two exchanged words and he told her not to call police. She called her boyfriend on a cellphone. Then she said the man "got really scared" and walked back to the paved trail.
"Once we got there, he took off to the left and I took off to the right, ended the call and called 911," Robertson said.
Officers from the Fayetteville and Springdale police departments responded, spreading out along the trail. According to Fayetteville dispatchers, officials with the Botanical Garden, Lake Fayetteville marina, Fayetteville Parks and Recreation Department and Lokomotion were notified and a police dog from the University of Arkansas Police Department was deployed.
Robertson, a reporter with the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, described the attacker as a 5-foot-9-inch white man in his mid-30s with an average build and stubble on his face. She told police he was wearing a dark ball cap -- possibly with four sections of patterns on it -- and a gray shirt and cargo shorts. She said she thought he was carrying a dark backpack.
Stout said Monday that after various media reports, a man called police saying he remembered seeing someone who matched that description. He said the man was acting strangely before getting into a 1990s model Ford Ranger with dull or faded red paint.
"Anyone who had any encounter with someone matching that description on the trail, we need to talk to that person," Stout said.
"There were a lot of people walking the trail that day," he added. "It's very possible that this guy may have had an encounter with somebody else. It just hasn't been reported yet."
Mihalevich and Stout encouraged trail users to be aware of their surroundings. Find a partner to run or walk with, they said, and, if possible, run with a cellphone or even pepper spray.
Mihalevich said officials are in the process of putting mile marker signs on every lamppost along the Razorback Greenway, giving users an easy way to tell dispatchers where they are in case of an emergency.
Stout said police are prepared to access sections of the trail with bicycles, motorcycles or Chevrolet Tahoes if necessary.
Robertson declined medical treatment Sunday and said Monday her face was swollen, she had bruises on her neck and had scrapes on her legs.
She, like Stout and Mihalevich, encouraged people to take certain precautions when they're out walking or running.
"It's hard for me to tell someone it's unsafe when I'm not sure that that's really accurate," Robertson said. "But I certainly will not be going there just by myself anymore."
NW News on 09/15/2015