A 22 year old man is accused of sexually and physically assaulting a woman and throwing bleach on her.
Watertown City Police arrested Christopher Hickey of Syracuse on charges of unlawful imprisonment, assault and forcible touching.
According to police, patrols were called to the 100 block of Keyes Avenue at 9 a.m. Friday after receiving a report that a man was chasing a screaming woman.
When patrols found the woman, they noticed she had bloodied, swollen lips and smelled of bleach.
The man had fled the scene before officers arrived, but after getting a description, Officer Sean Boyle remembered seeing the suspect running to a city bus on Washington Street.
The suspect got off the bus a few blocks away and began running between houses.
He was taken into custody behind a home on the 100 block of Flower Avenue West.
According to court documents, the woman is 35 years old and was restrained inside an apartment for approximately 30 minutes.
The papers state the alleged victim was punched in the head and face, ordered to undress so the suspect could look for money he believed was stolen and sexually assaulted.
According to Lieutenant Frank Derrigo, Hickey poured bleach over the Watertown woman's head.
"He was doing all these things to get the money back or to get her to tell him where it was," said Derrigo.
Derrigo said the Hickey and the woman were acquaintances and that the assault took place in the Keyes Avenue apartment of a mutual friend.
He said the woman feared for her life, but was able to escape and scream for help.
Hickey was arraigned in Watertown City Court Friday afternoon and remanded to the Jefferson County Jail in lieu of $5,000 cash or $10,000 bond.
