Dallas police looking into two separate weekend sex assaults

DALLAS - The Dallas Police Department is clarifying details in two sexual assaults early Sunday morning less than two miles apart.

One of the violent attacks was in Deep Ellum and the suspect was arrested. The other attack was in South Dallas. No suspect information has been released at this time.

A police spokesperson says there was some misinformation that was released in the beginning, making it seem as if there was just one attack.

The explanation for the confusion: police say they were dealing with two sexual assaults in a short time frame that both happened on Malcolm X Boulevard.

Edith Norris described how she carries herself in the area of Malcolm X and MLK boulevards in South Dallas.

“Everybody come through here just be careful of your surroundings and walk like you not scared,” she said.

Police say about 5 a.m. Sunday a woman walking alone was approached by a man driving a gold four-door sedan and offered her a ride. When she refused, he forced her into the car, drove a short distance, pulled her out and raped her.

“We have so many single mothers that walk the street, have to be at work at 5 a.m.,” said a woman at a nearby bus stop who did not want her face shown. “And they walk around carrying knives and tasers because you don't know what's going to jump out at you.”

About five hours before the rape in South Dallas, less than two miles away on Malcolm X Boulevard in Deep Ellum, police say 40-year-old Roy Gutierrez grabbed a woman by the neck and arm and forced her to an alley. Police say he then pushed her to the ground, strangled and raped her.

Gutierrez has a long criminal history with a dozen mug shots for charges including burglary, trespassing, and aggravated sexual assault. He was arrested for the Deep Ellum rape after police circulated a picture of him from surveillance video.

Police say the Deep Ellum and South Dallas rapes are not related. Mounted cameras cover the intersection, but police did not respond when asked if the cameras caught anything that might help put a second attacker behind bars.

Police also want to clarify that neither woman went willingly as it was indicated in the early information that was released. There’s also no mention of either attacker using a weapon.