Full Notification

This afternoon, police arrested the suspect who was responsible for sexually assaulting a woman who was walking on El Camino Real early Saturday morning. On Saturday, December 29, 2018 at 3:30 a.m., an officer patrolling was flagged down on El Camino Real near Grant Avenue by a man who reported his girlfriend had just been assaulted in the 2500 block of El Camino Real. The preliminary investigation revealed that a woman in her thirties had been unloading items out of her vehicle to give to her friend. As she walked on El Camino Real to meet her friend at an apartment complex, she felt someone grab her buttocks. The victim turned and saw an unknown male who then pushed her to the ground on her back. The suspect straddled her, started touching her genitals over her clothing, and threatened her if she screamed. The victim screamed and yelled help which alerted the victim’s boyfriend who came outside and saw the attack. The suspect ran away southbound on El Camino Real. Through follow-up investigation, detectives were able to identify the suspect on Sunday, December 30 as 28-year-old Daniel Eduardo Alvarez of East Palo Alto. That evening, detectives obtained an arrest warrant for Alvarez charging him with assault to commit a sex offense, criminal threats, false imprisonment, and sexual battery (all felonies). Over the course of the next few days, detectives searched for Alvarez throughout the Peninsula. On today’s date at about 3:45 p.m., officers from the Menlo Park Police Department located the suspect vehicle (a red 1993 Toyota Corolla four-door sedan) unoccupied in the 800 block of East Bayshore Road in East Palo Alto. Shortly thereafter, Palo Alto detectives located the suspect inside a residence in the 1100 block of Saratoga Avenue in East Palo Alto and arrested him without incident. Police booked Alvarez into the Santa Clara County Main Jail pursuant to the warrant. Police also booked him for an outstanding misdemeanor warrant for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs out of San Mateo County. His booking photo is attached to this release (note: the booking photo has been removed pursuant to AB994 as of December 2023). Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call our 24-hour dispatch center at 650-329-2413. Anonymous tips can be e-mailed to [email protected] or sent via text message or voice mail to 650-383-8984. Tips can also be submitted anonymously through our free mobile app, downloadable at www.bit.ly/PAPD-AppStore or www.bit.ly/PAPD-GooglePlay.