A 27-year-old woman was followed home and attacked in North Beach at 1:11am this morning, but neighbors came to her aid and thwarted the suspect, who is now in custody.

SFPD Central Station Capt. David Lazar said the woman, whom he did not identify, was walking home from her job on Market Street and said somewhere on Kearny Street, she felt like someone was following her. "She made her way up Kearny and up Columbus and then on to Grant," he said, "and then she noticed at Grant and Vallejo, the suspect was walking closely behind her. She went down Union Street eastbound and Verannes Street, and she got almost to Filbert. He grabbed her by the shoulders; he pulled on her left shoulder, spinning her around, and pulled on both shoulders trying to throw her to the ground." She was not injured, he added.

Varennes Street near Filbert Street. Photo: Geri Koeppel/Hoodline

That's when the woman started screaming for help and fighting off her attacker. Neighbor Morgan Giulianelli heard the scream, and she and several neighbors ran out to help. "All of our neighbors met for the first time last night," she said. "She lives right up the street from us. All of us were in our PJs. My neighbor came out in his underwear and bare feet." She added, "I think when we all ran out there, it spooked him and he ran off." She was especially rattled because, she said, "He didn't say anything to her. He didn't take her bag; he wasn't interested in robbing her."

The red box is the attack site; the arrow is where the neighbors found the victim. Image: Morgan Giulianelli

The group called 911 and consoled the victim, and officers arrived quickly, Giulianelli said. At 1:50am, Capt. Lazar said, officers found the suspect, age 35, near the North Beach Branch Library. He did not release the man's name. The victim identified him, and he was arrested and charged with false imprisonment. Giulianelli said she heard he was trying to climb a fence to escape. 

Varennes near Union Street, where neighbors encountered the victim. Photo: Geri Koeppel/Hoodline

Giulianelli sent an account of the incident earlier this morning to the North Beach News Facebook page, which posted it and has provided updates throughout the day. After hearing a suspect was arrested, she said, "I think because we acted so quickly he wasn’t able to get too far. That makes me feel a lot better. It really reaffirmed we do live in a community where we care about each other and we have each other’s backs. We stayed with her for an hour after that and made sure she was OK." However, she added that she immediately opened up a package of mace her mother had sent her a while back and is carrying it with her now. 

"I applaud the neighbors for helping their fellow neighbor," Capt. Lazar said, but he also issued words of warning:  "Walking home late at night, it’s best to walk with a friend to be aware of your surroundings. If you get a suspicion someone’s following you, it’s important to yell out right away; to call 911 from your cell phone." He added that North Beach is a safe neighborhood and this is the first such attack like this he'd heard of.

Giulianelli, who's lived in North Beach four years, said just a half an hour before the attack, she and her roommates were talking about what a safe area they live in. Still, she said, she'd like to see more police patrols at night. And she applauded the woman for screaming and fighting back, saying it could have saved her life. "All the way on Vallejo and Kearny, they heard her scream," she said. "It chokes me up thinking of that scream. I’ll never forget that scream."

Update, 7/13: Lt. Hector Jusino, who is in charge at SFPD Central Station this week while Capt. David Lazar is off, told us that the suspect in this case was re-booked today and the district attorney is filing charges. The suspect had other warrants for his arrest for things like vehicle code violations and open container, but nothing violent. The case number is 150599462.