Man Arrested for ‘Brazen’ Attacks in Alexandria

Police have arrested a man for two frightening attacks within the same hour in Alexandria Thursday. In both attacks, police said, the man tried to push his victims into their apartments.

Marquette Johnson, 34, who has no fixed address, has been charged with two counts of attempted abduction and two counts of attempted burglary.

The first attack happened at 9:04 p.m. in the 900 block of N. Patrick Street, police said. A man followed a woman into her apartment building and onto the elevator; when she unlocked the door to her home, he tried to push her inside. The victim screamed and the suspect fled, police said.

Then, at 9:54 p.m. in the 700 block of N. Fayette Street, a man approached a woman as she opened her front door, police said. He tried to push her inside her apartment, police said. She yelled too, and the suspect fled.

Police captured Johnson nearby. He is being held without bond.

"It's a pretty brazen attack, that he attacked two women within the course of an hour," said Crystal Nosal, a spokeswoman for the Alexandria Police Department.

She added that it's important for women to speak up if a stranger tries to follow them into their building. "A lot of women want to be polite and don't want to challenge someone who is following them into the building," Nosal said. "You should challenge someone. Go with your instincts."