West Springfield Police to Address Recent Assaults

Supervisor John Cook is hosting a police information session about two recent assaults in the Braddock District.

Residents will have the opportunity to voice their concerns, understand what's being done to secure the community, and hear safety advice from Fairfax County Police Captain Joe Hill, who leads the . The meeting starts at 7:30 p.m. on April 2 at .

Fairfax neighborhoods are reeling after two local assaults. A 24-year-old woman was on March 14. Less than a week later, on Monday afternoon, a 16-year-old W.T. Woodson High School student was near Frost Middle School.

The two crimes carry some similarities:

• Both victims were grabbed from behind in or near a wooded area. 
• The suspect(s) ended up getting spooked and fled the scene, allowing the victims to call for help.
• Police released similar suspect descriptions. In both cases the attackers were white, around 5-feet 7-inches tall.
• The victims were female, in the same age range (24, 16). 
• The attacks occurred within three miles of each other.

But police said that doesn't mean the cases are related. They happened at different times of the day. The suspect used a knife to threaten his victim in the Kings Park West sexual assault.

Police released a neighbor's surveillance photos and videos of a suspect jogging down a Frost Middle School-area street around the time of the latest attack. County and Fairfax City officers stepped up patrols in the Woodson area.

Call Crime Solvers at 1-866-411-TIPS/8477 with any information. You can also e-mail Crime Solvers at http://www.fairfaxcrimesolvers.org or text "TIP187" plus your message to CRIMES/274637. Phone Fairfax County Police at 703-691-2131.