Several women in Dallas reported being assaulted in broad daylight on Katy Trail, Dallas PD investigation ongoing

Dallas, Texas – Authorities have stepped up surveillance along one of Dallas’s renowned trails, following multiple reported daylight assaults on women.

Increasingly, local residents are spreading a warning via social media and face-to-face conversations. They’re advising women to remain vigilant, as a man appears to be specifically targeting women on the Katy Trail.

Concerning incidents have come to light in the recent days. Regular trail users – women, in particular – reported experiences of being trailed, seized, and inappropriately touched. Upon sharing their experiences, they have come to the assumption that the same perpetrator might be responsible for these attacks.

A local woman named Courtney, who preferred not to disclose her surname, expressed that the trail, once her refuge, no longer instills the same sense of safety. She emphasized that many women, whose experiences are now being shared among the community, have been victims of these assaults during daylight hours. She recounted how one woman had described her harrowing experience online in a vivid account.

“He reached up under her skirt and she was screaming, and she said no one came to help her,” Courtney said to NBC-DFW.

Friends of the Katy Trail, a nonprofit organization, has acknowledged the reported assaults and has committed to disseminating safety advice to trail users.

In response to inquiries about these incidents, the Dallas Police Department has issued a public statement:

“The Dallas Police Department is aware of these reports and is investigating, along with monitoring trail systems.”

Courtney said she’s seen the man believed to be the suspect and worries that his actions will only escalate.

“God forbid something more extreme happens,” she said. “That’s the opposite of what we want. And I think that’s why it’s so important to talk about it because we don’t want something even worse to happen to someone.”