Authorities are seeking leads on a suspect who assaulted and tied up a 62-year-old Fountain Hills woman Monday morning after she walked in on the burglar.
The incident occurred at her home near …
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Authorities are seeking leads on a suspect who assaulted and tied up a 62-year-old Fountain Hills woman Monday morning after she walked in on the burglar.
The incident occurred at her home near Monterey Drive and Lema Circle.
The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office identified the victim as Susan Dawson, a long-time local Realtor and active with a dog rescue group.
“I’m very nervous,” Dawson told The Times Tuesday morning. “I don’t think I’ll be able to be here alone in the house for some time.
“You live here for 30 years and never expect anything like this. People in the community need to know this can happen.”
Dawson said she came into the house through the garage when the burglar rushed down the hallway and struck her.
“It was the scariest situation I’ve ever been in,” Dawson said. “I’m very lucky all I ended up with is a broken nose.”
MCSO mobilized a manhunt for the suspect described as a Hispanic male who fled on foot, according to Sheriff Joe Arpaio. The suspect was armed with a gun.
Dawson was assaulted, with injuries to the head and face and was tied up, Arpaio said. She was treated by fire department paramedics and taken to a Scottsdale hospital for treatment of non-life threatening injuries.
She was later released.
Dawson was returning home from a morning workout at about 7:30 when she surprised the burglar. He hit her and pulled her into a bedroom and tied her up. He took jewelry during the burglary. Before leaving he threatened her if she called the police.
Dawson was able to free herself to call for help. She called a neighbor and her son and son-in-law for help. Her son-in-law, a Glendale police officer, called the Sheriff’s Office when he arrived.
Sheriff’s Capt. Joe Rodriquez said MCSO received the call at about 8:20 a.m., but they believe there was about a 20-minute delay before the Sheriff’s Office was called.
The Sheriff’s helicopter was in the air over the scene for more than two hours and MCSO K-9 units were called in to attempt to get a lead on the location of the suspect.
A witness reported seeing a man running south in the direction of Shea Boulevard at about the time of the incident. He was described as about five feet, eight inches tall with dark hair, about 160 pounds and was clean shaven. He was wearing a black shirt and black shorts when he was seen fleeing the area.
The search with dogs and the helicopter was called off shortly before 11 a.m.
Rodriquez said detectives would follow up after they had an opportunity to interview Dawson in detail. The house was processed by sheriff’s crime scene technicians.
