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Two women assaulted while running in Suwannee

SUWANEE, Ga. — Police are tracking down leads to catch a man who assaulted two women on an early morning run in Suwanee.

Police say the attack happened around 6 a.m. Monday along Eva Kennedy Road in Suwanee. Two women out for an early morning run were surprised by a man who they said "came out of nowhere."

“It’s extremely frightening,” said avid runner Elizabeth Olivia.

Olivia told Channel 2’s Tom Regan the attack is a reminder that even women running in pairs can be vulnerable.

Police say the two victims were running when a man suddenly rushed up from behind them.

“"He just approached them trying to start a conversation, ‘Hey are you runners? I'm a runner,’" said Suwanee police Capt. Cass Mooney.

Police say the man then lunged toward the women.

“Grabbed one of the women on the buttocks,” said Mooney. “They ran a little further and called 911. While one was on the phone with us, he grabbed another woman on the buttocks and the breast.”

Police say he made a statement that he “just wanted to touch them.”

The victims described the attacker as a black male, 5'9" and wearing a red shirt with white lettering on it and khaki pants.

“It’s very unnerving,” a runner told Regan. “I run with my dog, I have mace in my hand, but the fact that I get concerned that I can't run out here by myself is pretty scary."

Another woman said she often walks her dog along the road early in the morning and she always considered it a safe place to walk.

“'Sometimes I walk the dog at 4 o'clock in the morning,” said Jean Connelly, who lives nearby. “That really surprises me.”

This attack follows a brutal assault on a jogger along the Silver Comet Trail last week. Police are still investigating that attack.