Security video shows brazen sexual assault of a California woman by a homeless man

The alleged sexual assault of a woman by a homeless man was recorded by Surveillance video on the sidewalk in Long Beach, California.

Video from around 2 p.m. Friday shows a woman walking past a man sitting on the sidewalk on Linden Avenue at the Wabi Sabi Village Market.

The man stood up after she passed him and followed her. He is said to have exposed himself and sexually assaulted her from behind. She fell to the ground and a bystander tried to intervene and chased him away after adjusting his pants.

Police said they responded to the incident shortly afterward, but the man fled the area. Hours later, they arrested a suspect: 30-year-old Miguel Avila. Police said Avila was homeless.

Long Beach Police Department spokeswoman Alyssa Baeza said Avila was charged with an outstanding warrant on suspicion of sexual assault and suspicion of theft of personal property. He is being held on $1,000 bail.

Residents in the neighborhood said it’s becoming more dangerous because of the homelessness crisis.

“It was horrible to see,” Long Beach resident Jason Greenleaf told KTLA-TV. “I mean, this neighborhood is out of control.”

Others told KTLA that businesses were closed because people were afraid to walk around the area.

“The police call this area ‘The Beast,'” Greenleaf continued. “They say they don’t have enough officers to patrol the area and they are asking us not to do anything. We are in a difficult position.”

Joe Harding, another resident, said the problems went beyond homelessness.

“A lot of people want to use the word ‘homeless’ as just a blanket description, but we don’t like that term,” Harding told KTLA. “Those who are on the streets, violent, addicted, mentally unstable, constantly homeless and somehow socially inept are adding to the problems we have here.”

The average home price in Long Beach is $808,000 after to Realtor.com.

Here is the surveillance video of the incident:

Cameras capture street sexual assault in Long Beachwww.youtube.com

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