Teenager attacked in downtown area
Local police are looking for a suspect in an attack on a teenaged girl in downtown Whitehorse on Tuesday night.
Local police are looking for a suspect in an attack on a teenaged girl in downtown Whitehorse on Tuesday night.
The 15-year-old girl was walking along Strickland Street between Third and Fourth avenues when she was accosted, Whitehorse RCMP said Wednesday afternoon.
She managed to get away and call police, who attended the scene shortly after 11 p.m.
Police are calling it a "possible sexual assault incident."
"She was lucky she was able to fight off her attacker," Sgt. Don Rogers said when asked if the assault was violent.
The 15-year-old girl did not need to be hospitalized, he added.
Rogers couldn't give any more details on the nature of the alleged sexual assault; in legalese, the term refers to sexual offences that range from groping to rape.
"It's still under investigation, so we can't release any more details at the moment," he said.
Police do not believe the suspect poses a public safety risk, according to Rogers.
"We believe it's an isolated incident and not random."
Rogers could not say if the girl knew her attacker, but reiterated that police do not believe it was a random assault.
Alcohol is believed to be a factor in the case, on the part of the attacker, not the victim.
Comments (8)
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enoughalready on Aug 10, 2009 at 12:05 pm
Joseph...what made you think there were any racial lines to this story anyway? I sure don't remember reading any, nor any Human Rights issue factoring in.
Or do you always assume that a certain race is to blame when you see a crime story? And what "certain race" were you referring to with your comment?
Get with it man, crime has no color. Turns out the guy was caucasian, so there goes your theory!
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anonymous on Aug 10, 2009 at 8:43 am
Hey Joseph Looks like it was a caucasian.
Chalk one up for your side.
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yukonmother on Aug 10, 2009 at 5:18 am
As the mother of 4 daughters, I so hear the other moms frustration on not having resources out there, but like the previous writer, We need to stop the offenders from praying on these young girls. Our daughters should be able to walk the streets safely, however that is not the case anymore. There needs to be stiffer sentences for the scum that try to molest them and intice them with things that are forbidden to them, ie alcohol and drugs. I personally would love to see the age of consent go back up to eighteen. That may/maynot stop some of these perverts from molesting the girls. The stiffer sentences and detailed descriptions may also help as well.
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yukonmom on Aug 10, 2009 at 5:03 am
I am fully aware of how kids work and how FCS cannot help parents who are doing nothing wrong in their lifestyle.
I would think the same thing about anyone of any age- even a male- walking alone late at night. It seems that people don't have common sense anymore and can't seem to get past the I have a cellphone, I'll be okay thought. And the sad thing is common sense cannot be learned.
And Girl Interupted and Mirim- I didn't judge anyone- I stated "Parents/ kids have to realize that even in a small city like Whitehorse, horrible things happen! " I put it out there that people have to be more careful... and we have to watch out for criminals and keep ourselves safe!
Don't put words in my mouth- I get enough of that from MY TEENAGER!
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Girl Uninterrupted on Aug 6, 2009 at 10:35 pm
Either your kids are too young, or you're mom of the year and your angel-hearted teens haven't ever disobeyed you. Why aren't you judging the actions of the criminal opposed to the actions of the victim and her family??
We, as citizens should be able to walk the streets of our towns and cities at anytime of the day or night and feel safe - obviously this isn't the case .... would you have a different opinion if the girl was 18?
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Miriam Smith on Aug 6, 2009 at 10:24 am
yukonmom - at one time I asked the same question, - why a 15 year old was wandering around alone so late at night - then a year ago, my 16 yr old started the open defiance against curfew, house rules, and running away - despite RCMP and Family service calls and meetings, I got the same answer - they have limited resources, and because it was not a "child Protection" issue, they could not take the teen into custody - I wanted to help my child, but because I wasn't abusing - there were no services - it was suggested perhaps I needed to soften up some of the expectations - which by the way is interesting as we are told it is our responsbility as parents to raise children so there is a basic social standard of behaviour. Not much parents can do when your child is telling you to F off as they walk out the door, and when you try and set consequences the cycle just continues. I'm told by my teen, "don't worry - I know how to handle myself", as they walk the streets of whitehorse all night. They are told to seek out the youth centre, or angels nest, if they need a safety net, but there are no resources to back parent expectations of the basic house rules. Some teens yes, have issues of home and safety, many others who are making certain choices have the benefit of support. Just my thoughts.
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Joseph Campbell on Aug 6, 2009 at 10:21 am
Now, why won't the police release any more information on the case or the suspect to the public? I mean, the girl must have given them some onformation on the description of the perp. Is it possibly because the police don't want to offend a certain race by publishing the information? The police are always looking for the public to help them in solving cases of this sort. But how can we help when they won't give us any information? By the time they get this Human Rights offense thing solved, the case will be too old for the public to remember any of the details.
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yukonmom on Aug 6, 2009 at 8:58 am
This is absolutely terrible!! But I wonder why a 15 year old was wandering around alone so late at night? I know it is still light out, but that still doesn't explain it. Parents/ kids have to realize that even in a small city like Whitehorse, horrible things happen!