Jogger escapes man with 6-inch blade after attack in St. Augustine

Officers are searching for a man who clubbed a 20-year-old woman and attacked her with a 6-inch blade while she was jogging in St. Augustine on Tuesday night, police said.

The woman was able to escape her attacker by grabbing the knife with her bare hands, according to police.

She told police she was running on Flagler Boulevard near Coronado Avenue around 10 p.m. when she passed a vehicle that turned on its engine.

She said she took out one of her earbuds to check out the noise but before she could turn around, a man came up from behind and clubbed her on the left side of her face with a hard object, officers said.

The suspect grabbed the woman around the neck with one arm and covered her mouth with the other. The woman told police that her attacker told her to not scream or she would die.

The suspect then pulled out a 6-inch knife but let go of the woman after she grabbed the blade with her hands.

She said she ran through residents' yards to escape the man. She could not identify the suspect's face or any other features because it was too dark outside, she said.

She said she believed the suspect's vehicle was an old utility cargo-style van with no back windows.

When police asked her exactly where the assault happened, she could not fully recall because the street was dark at the time.

She said she believed it may have happened near Flagler Blvd. and Ribualt Street.

She had a deep cut on each of her palms and her neck was red after the attack, police said.

Officials are searching for the suspect, described as approximately 6 feet tall with a muscular build.

They believe a man who was walking his dog around the time of the attack may have information.

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