A woman in Santa Monica had a close call after spending a few floors worth of time with a psycho who indicated he was going to rape her in an office elevator, cops said.

Lucky for the victim: The elevator opened a few stops up and someone was waiting for it, according to Santa Monica police. The witness waiting for the lift chased after the suspect unsuccessfully.

According to the SMPD …

… it all happened Wednesday at 429 Santa Monica Blvd. when the woman arrived for work at 9 a.m. She parked in the underground garage and got in the elevator.

According to police:


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… The suspect … emerged from an unknown location and entered the elevator.

Once the elevator doors closed, the suspect immediately assaulted the victim, while making a statement which led the victim to believe she was going to be sexually assaulted. The victim fought back and when the elevator stopped a few floors up, the suspect ran off.

The man fled down Fifth Street, cops said.

He was described as Latino or Middle Eastern, around 5 feet, 8 or 9 inches, 150 pounds, with short, straight hair, arm tattoos and a goatee. He was wearing a tank top and orange-and-red board shorts.

Maybe know him? Call the SMPD at 310-458-8495.

[@dennisjromero / djromero@laweekly.com / @LAWeeklyNews]

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