Woman Sexually Assaulted At Coin Laundry: Police

OAKLAND COUNTY, MI — Oakland County Sheriff's Office Deputies are searching for a man accused of robbing and sexually and physically assaulting an employee at a self-service, according to a press release.

Deputies were dispatched to Baldwin Coin Laundry in the 1500 block of Baldwin Rd. in Pontiac on Dec. 23 at 1:54 a.m. A 35-year-old woman, who works at the facility, told deputies that there was one customer in the laundry and she was cleaning when a man knocked on the locked door.

The woman informed him that he couldn’t come in unless he had clothes to wash and he reportedly replied he wanted to wash a coat. The woman unlocked the door and the man walked in and sat at a table. The woman again said he could only stay if he had clothes to wash and he responded that his mother was bringing clothes.

Deputies report the woman continued cleaning when suddenly the man walked up to her with his hand in his coat pocket and said he had a gun. He reportedly forced her to give him the money in the register, then walked the woman into a backroom where he physically and sexually assaulted her before fleeing the scene on foot and running north.

Deputies established a perimeter and an OCSO K-9 tracked the suspect's movements for a great distance, but eventually lost his scent. The woman was transported to McLaren Oakland Hospital for medical treatment. The investigation is ongoing.

Baldwin Coin Laundry was the scene of a similar crime in April. An 18-year-old employee reported that a man robbed and sexually assaulted her at the facility during the early morning hours.

The OSCO has released a surveillance photo of the suspect in the Dec. 23 attack, and he is described as a black man, approximately 5 feet 10 inches to 6 feet tall, thin, and about 20-years-old. He was wearing dark shoes, blue jeans, a red or orange shirt, brown leather coat and a dark knit hat with orange and white stripes.

Know any information? There is a $1,000 cash reward and you can report it anonymously by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-SPEAK-UP.

Photo courtesy of the Oakland County Sheriff's Office