Man arrested in string of violent West LA sex assaults, Second suspect at large

WEST LOS ANGELES, Calif. (FOX 11 / CNS) - Concerned residents in West Los Angeles gathered to hear from police about a series of sexual assaults on women in three different communities. As of Wednesday night, one man is behind bars...another man is still being sought.

About a hundred people gathered for a town hall meeting at the West LA municipal building to talk about the sexual assaults. in West LA, there were two rapes in a span of three days.

Tuesday evening, police arrested Pablo Carlos Pineda in MacArthur park. Police say the 32-year-old transient is the suspect in four violent sexual assaults in West LA, Santa Monica, and Beverly Hills.

"He was a very violent sexual offender who attacked women on four occasions. It's very good to have him in custody so he can no longer victimize anyone at this point," Santa Monica Police Lieutenant Saul Rodriguez said.

Pineda is the suspect in attacks that happened in Santa Monica on January 15th and February 5th, in Beverly Hills on April 15th and in West LA on July 2nd. He's facing a number of felony charges including forcible rape, assault with intent to commit rape and assault by means of producing great bodily injury.

"We had a July 2nd attack that suspect is in custody. We had a July 4th attack and that suspect is still outstanding," a West LA Police Captain said during a town hall meeting Wednesday night.

Police believe another man is responsible for the Fourth of July assault. That suspect was seen in security video. He's described as a black male between the ages of 25-30 years-old with black hair and facial hair. He's believed to be about 6'0-'2 feet tall and weighs approximately 160 pounds.

After learning the two latest attacks are unrelated, residents attending the town hall were upset..

"I live in the neighborhood and I wanted to get more information," resident Catherine H. said. She says she's heard conflicting reports and has been uneasy.

She says she's consciously changed some of her habits to protect herself.

"You have to be vigilant, you can't walk with your headphones in...you can't look at your phone," Catherine said.

The chairman of the West LA - Sawtelle neighborhood council says he doesn't want his community to be lulled into a false sense of security because one of the suspects has been caught.

"We want people to understand it isn't good until they're all caught, and if there's two suspects not one, I think it's important for them to know there is still someone at large and he's is dangerous.

Police say these types of violent sexual assaults are rare. They say usually sex assaults happen between people who know each other, not a suspect attacking a stranger.

Pineda is expected at LAX court Thursday. He's being held on $382,00 bail.

Police asking for information in connection to both cases.

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