ST. LOUIS PARK, Minn. — Police are warning people to stay alert on the North Cedar Lake Regional Trail after a series of disturbing incidents involving a man on a two-wheel electric scooter.
Since early October, St. Louis Park police have received reports of a man approaching women on the trail and touching them, with some cases involving attempts to grab them. Authorities are aware of five separate incidents, which have occurred between Cedar Lake and Dakota Park.
"We've noticed a trend over the past month where people are being accosted by this particular individual," said a St. Louis Park police spokesperson.
In some instances, a verbal confrontation was enough to make the suspect flee, while in others, physically pushing him away prompted him to run off. Police advise trail users to stay vigilant and take action if confronted.
"Most of the time, this is a very safe place to be," the spokesperson said. "We want people to understand that, but we do want them to be aware of their surroundings."
While the area is typically free of such incidents, police said the reports were troubling and wanted to make the public aware of the situation.
"We've been lucky that generally this area is very safe," the spokesperson added. "We don't get called to this trail system much at all, but this incident is something we wanted to bring to the public's attention so they are aware."
If you're aware of any information about such incidents, police are asking for you to report it to them.