A Columbus woman was assaulted at dawn Wednesday by a masked man while she was running along First Street, near the Riverwalk, according to Capt. Fred Shelton with the Columbus Police Department.
Authorities have no description or name for the perpetrator.
In an interview with The Dispatch on Wednesday, the woman’s father said she began screaming to get the attention of another person, who was nearby, and that person called 911. The perpetrator fled. Police arrived within two minutes, the victim’s father said.
The woman was running between Carrier Lodge and the Riverwalk when the incident occurred. She was unharmed, but shaken, according to her father. She refused medical attention at the scene, according to Shelton.
The victim’s father said he has worried about his daughter and her roommate running at the Riverwalk early in the morning before. They normally run together, but the roommate got up later than usual Wednesday morning and they were running separately.
“(We want) these runners, walkers, joggers around the Riverwalk walking by themselves or running by themselves, just to beware,” the victim’s father said.
To report information about this crime, call the Columbus Police Department at 662-244-3500 or Golden Triangle Crime Stoppers at 1-800-530-7151.
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