A girl walking to school in Meriden Friday morning was grabbed and sexually assaulted, according to police.
The 16-year-old victim was walking to her bus stop along Springdale Avenue when a man grabbed her and pulled her into a vacant house. The man pulled the girl's sweater over her face and then forcibly sexually assaulted her, police said.
According to police, the man threatened to kill the teen if she screamed or cried for help. He told the victim to count to 100 and then fled the scene as she counted.
Multiple neighbors tell NBC Connecticut, they heard screams coming from the house around 7 a.m. Friday.
"It's sad to hear this story," one neighbor said.
The vacant house has also been a problem in the past, those same neighbors added.
Late Friday, an investigator was seen collecting an item of clothing from outside the vacant house and placing it in an evidence bag.
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The suspect is described as a man between 30 and 40 years old. He is somewhere between 5' 10" and 6' 0" tall with a medium build. He has no facial hair and was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt and a black winter hat.
Police are asking all Meriden residents, especially those living in an around Springdale Avenue to be vigilant and stay aware of their surroundings.
