Woman followed, sexually assaulted in downtown St. Paul

St. Paul police are investigating a sexual assault that took place on the Wabasha Street Bridge in downtown St. Paul early in the morning on June 4. 

A woman was walking back from the light rail around 3 a.m. when she realized a man was following her. The suspect caught up to her as she crossed the Wabasha Street Bridge.

“The male grabbed a shoe she was carrying in her hand, struck her with it, knocking her down to the street. She screamed when she went down on the ground. He yelled at her to quit screaming or he would kill her,” Sgt. Mike Ernster told Fox 9.

Ernster said the suspect pulled the woman off the sidewalk and sexually assaulted her, before heading east on Plato Boulevard.

Police are now gathering surveillance video from the area and asking the public for tips that could help lead to an arrest.