DENVER —
A man already in custody faces additional charges after he was connected to an attempted sexual assault that occurred in Sloan’s Lake Park in which three witnesses helped push the suspect away, according to a probable cause statement.
The suspect, identified as 27-year-old Daniel Martinez, now faces charges for criminal attempt to commit sexual assault, according to a probable cause statement from the Denver Police Department (DPD).
As part of this investigation, DPD said it is now looking for three men who helped the victim after this attempted assault, which occurred at around 7:30 p.m. Thursday near West 17th Avenue and North Tennyson Street.
The victim told police that she was walking on the trail around the lake when she passed a man who was sitting on a park bench, according to DPD. The victim said the man made some sort of statement she couldn’t hear, but she assumed he was hitting on her and chose not to respond.
According to the probable cause statement, the victim said when she passed the man, she heard a chain jingling and turned around to see that he was following her.
“In fear for her safety [the victim] began running away from the suspect," the statement reads. "The suspect caught up to her, put his arm around her in a choke-hold position, and tackled her to the ground.”
The victim told police she kicked the suspect and screamed for help. According to the probable cause statement, that’s when the three witnesses -- described as three tall and heavy-set black men -- pushed the man away from the victim, and told her to run away and call 911.
That’s exactly what the victim did when she ran to her home, which was near where the attack occurred.
The next day, according to the probable cause statement, the detective investigating the case noticed the suspect description matched that of Martinez, who was arrested at around 8:30 p.m. the night of the attack in the 1400 block of North Perry Street -- less than a mile away and 45 minutes later than where the first incident occurred.
The reason Martinez was arrested was redacted from the probable cause statement. According to Denver jail records, he was booked in the Downtown Detention Center on a fugitive hold out of both Arvada and Adams County.
When he was taken into custody, according to the probable cause statement, Martinez had a cut on his lip.
The victim was later able to identify Martinez out of a lineup of similar-looking men.
Anyone with information about this incident or the identities of the three good Samaritans is asked to call Metro Denver Crime Stoppers at 720-913-STOP.
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