Police are looking for a man who was in an auto accident with a Morgan Hill teen, then assaulted her and stole her purse when the two stopped to exchange information.
The 19-year-old victim was driving alone about 10:30 p.m. Wednesday when her vehicle was rear-ended by the suspect’s vehicle at Monterey and Watsonville roads, Morgan Hill police Sgt. Troy Hoefling said.
The suspect, later described as a male in his early 20s, motioned for the woman to pull over so they could exchange insurance information, Hoefling said. After the two conversed for several minutes, the man suddenly punched the victim multiple times in the face, until she fell to the ground.
The suspect then reached into the woman’s vehicle and stole her purse, police said. He returned to his vehicle and fled the scene.
Police later determined the suspect’s vehicle had been reported stolen out of San Jose earlier that day, Hoefling said. The stolen vehicle was recovered Saturday, abandoned in San Jose.
Morgan Hill detectives are working with San Jose police to investigate the crime, Hoefling said.
The suspect is described as a light-skinned Hispanic man in his early 20s, with medium length black hair, light facial hair around the mouth, similar to a goatee, police said. He was wearing a black hoodie and denim shorts at the time of the crime.
A composite sketch of the suspect was drawn and distributed to other law enforcement agencies in the area, Hoefling said.
“So far there are no (recent) similar cases reported, and we believe this to be an isolated incident,” Hoefling said. Police also remind motorists to only pull over in a safe, well-lit, well-populated area in the event of an accident, if possible, and call police.
Anyone with information about this incident may call Morgan Hill police at (408) 779-2101 or the anonymous tip line at (408) 947-7867.
