PAINESVILLE, Ohio — Lake Metroparks rangers are investigating two separate crimes that happened within minutes of each other on Greenway Trail in Painesville.
Just after 9 p.m. Monday, rangers received a call about an assault on the trail near West Walnut Street.
"This is highly unusual for not only this area but any area in the park that something like this would happen," Chief Ranger James Sivack said.
When rangers arrived, they found victims of two separate crimes.
The first involved two teenage boys riding e-bikes. Authorities said the teens saw a man walking toward them on the trail but didn't think anything of it until they told police he knocked one of the boys off his bike.
"The suspect took the one e-bike from one of the males and then proceeded to ride away in the opposite direction," Sivack said.
The suspect then rode the stolen e-bike a short distance before encountering four young women walking on the path.
"The girls had their cell phone lights on as flashlights, and he decided that he was going to take one of the cell phones, so they had those two had a brief altercation for the cell phone," Sivack explained.
Rangers said the suspect punched one of the young women in the face, but she did not give up her cell phone. That's when Sivack said the suspect then got back on the e-bike and fled.
Rangers are asking the public for help finding the e-bike and the suspect. The e-bike is described as a collapsible model with a broken headlight, a torn seat, and unique stickers. Rangers are also reviewing video and searching for clues.
"We obviously want to get to the bottom of it and, you know, make sure we make an arrest and prevent these kind of things from happening," Sivack said.
Alfonso Jimenez walks his dog, Scooby Doo, on the trail several times a week and said he has never had a problem.
"I come on my bike too sometimes, never an issue. Sometimes I come in late. My, my wife and my sister, they're always telling me don't go in that late. Maybe I'm going to start listening to them from now on," Jimenez said.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Lake Metroparks rangers at 440-354-3233.
