Sheriff, Monarch ski resort faulted for late sex assault notice

Photo: Monarch Mountain ski area (AP Photo)
In this December 2013 photo provided by Ski Monarch in Monarch, Colo., a skier takes a run on a snowy mountain at the resort.

Monarch Mountain ski area and the Chaffee County Sheriff's Office are facing criticism for not letting the public know sooner about a would-be sex predator at the resort.

The sheriff's office says there have been two attempted assaults in the last two weeks but it only made the information public Friday after the second one. In both cases, the sheriff's office says the suspect rode the ski lift with the victims, followed the teen girls down a ski run and forced them into the woods to try to sexually assault them. In the second attack, he fired a handgun. Both girls escaped.

Undersheriff John Spezze told The Gazette that the first victim didn't provide enough details for a public warning. He says investigators are following up on some good leads.

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Information from: The Gazette