A man hired to protect residents is accused of sexually assaulting one.
Phoenix police report that on February 21 a woman in her mid-twenties was sleeping in her apartment near Central Avenue and Camelback Road. She was awoken at about 1 a.m. by a man standing over her.
She tried to escape but was held down, threatened and sexually assaulted by the suspect, later identified as Steven Charles Hemmer Jr.
Authorities were able to get DNA evidence at the scene but had no match in their database. During their investigation, police found out that Hemmer was on security duty at the apartment on the night of the attack. He reportedly talked to neighbors of the victim asking if they were aware of her patio door being open.
Police say about a month after the assault Hemmer approached the victim asking her how the investigation was going. The victim "had a bad feeling about him and believed he was the person who sexually assaulted her that night."
Police were watching Hemmer as he discarded a cigarette butt and they used DNA from the butt to link Hemmer to the attack.
Hemmer was arrested at his home in Tempe on April 24, when he allegedly admitted to police to entering the victim’s apartment while he was working and committed various sex acts without her consent.
He has been charged with sexual assault.
