Police probe bizarre sexual assaults

Scranton detectives are investigating an unusual sexual assault last week in the city's South Side. A man picked up a teenage girl outside her residence and drove her to a supermarket parking lot, where he told her to sign his penis with a pen. The incident was similar to one reported on Cedar Avenue about eight months ago.

The latest incident was reported by the 16-year-old victim on Friday. The girl told police she was outside her residence last Thursday when a red minivan pulled up and the driver, who identified himself as "Tony" and said he was from Allentown, invited her to get into the vehicle. They drove to the parking lot of Gerrity's on Meadow Avenue, where they went into the rear of the van and the man told her to sign his penis with an ink pen, which the girl did, police said. The man then returned the girl to her home.



Police released a composite drawing of the suspect, who is described as a white man, about 35 years old, tall, with a thin build and brown hair. He was wearing a blue button-down shirt, black pants and black shoes. The victim described the minivan as firetruck red in colour, with tinted windows in the back and a "lot of garbage" inside. The man told her it was his brother's van.

In the earlier incident, which was reported in July, a man driving a gold minivan who said he was from the Allentown area asked a woman in the 700 block of Cedar Avenue to sign his penis after stopping to ask her for directions. The woman told police the driver tried to force her into the vehicle when she refused.