A woman who had just moved to Los Angeles to start a new life, but was cruelly raped while walking along the canals of Venice Beach, has died after being in a coma for nearly two month.
Sarah Alden, 53, was declared brain dead earlier this week after being attacked on April 6 while walking along Southern California’s famous canals.
Alden, a mother of two sons, was the victim of a most horrific attack that left her brutally raped and assaulted hours after she moved into her apartment to start a new life.
She wasn’t the only woman attacked that night: Mary Klein, 54, was the attacker’s second victim.
Sarah Alden, 53, was brutally attacked in Venice and taken off life support after two months
Alden was a mother and had just moved to Venice Beach, California, fulfilling her lifelong dream.
She too was sexually assaulted and suffered serious injuries to her body and face, thinking she was about to be killed.
The suspect, believed to be homeless, Anthony Francisco Jones, 29, was arrested by police on April 11 for the attacks. Police confirmed both attacks had a “sexual element”.
“The level of brutality that they engaged in was very reprehensible,” said Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón.
Jones was seen on surveillance footage carrying a bottle of alcohol while walking near the canals.
It is believed that the bottle he was carrying was also used in the attack which occurred just as Alden was moving from Massachusetts to California to start a new life.
Venice Beach was supposed to be a dream, but it turned into a nightmare for the victims of these horrific crimes.
Police said Anthony Francisco Jones, 29, was seen on surveillance video stalking the area where the two attacks took place.
Police arrested Jones, who was homeless, on April 11 after allegedly attacking Klein and Alden within an hour of each other.
Earlier in the day, before the attack, she had signed a lease for an apartment in Venice and was planning to surprise friends at brunch the next day, when the brutal assault suddenly ended those plans in an attack which would ultimately end his life.
Following the attack, she was left for dead and remained in a coma for the rest of her life after suffering multiple brain injuries.
She was surrounded by friends and family at the hospital when doctors finally took her off life support. His organs will be donated to help save the lives of others.
“She loved sunrises on the East Coast and sunsets on the West Coast. Sarah adored her two sons, her animals, and had a refined eye for vintage jewelry,” reads a tribute to Alden.
Earlier in the day, Sarah Alden had signed a lease for an apartment in Venice Beach and was planning to surprise friends the next day.
Alden was surrounded by friends and family at the hospital as doctors finally took her off life support. His organs will be donated to help save other people’s lives
Alden had moved to Los Angeles from Massachusetts and was planning to start a new life there.
Her children would have been reassured to know that their mother’s organs would be used to save the lives of others.
Jones was charged with forcible rape, torture, attempted murder, mutilation, sexual penetration by force and sodomy by force.
“Our hearts and deepest condolences go out to the victim’s family and friends during this incredibly difficult time,” the prosecutor’s office said. “Our office is evaluating how we will proceed to ensure the defendant is held fully accountable for his conduct.”
“It’s very sudden and shocking,” Alden’s friend Cynthia King told KTLA. “She was extremely intelligent, well educated and witty. It was stolen from us. I feel like I’m in an alternate reality. It’s not even real.
A GoFundMe to help Alden’s family cover medical and funeral expenses has so far raised $24,000.
A second woman, Mary Klein, 54, was also brutally attacked on April 6 while walking near her home, leaving her with a fractured jaw, missing teeth and numerous bruises on her face.
Klein cared for an elderly woman with ALS and soon-to-be grandmother
Klein, 54, the second woman who was attacked, says she barely remembers the brutal assault that left her with a fractured jaw, missing teeth and numerous bruises on her face and chest.
“It felt like I was hit by a truck,” she told KTLA. “My teeth were knocked out. My jaw is closed. He hit me in the face…I think he was trying to kill me.
Klein, a single mother, said she was run over unexpectedly while walking home around 10:30 p.m.
“All of a sudden I’m knocked out,” she said from her hospital bed.
She said she thought her attacker was “trying to kill her” as she was mercilessly beaten in the head and torso.
His injuries include a fractured jaw, broken teeth, multiple bruises and a large gash on the back of his head.
Klein (seen before the attack started) suffered serious injuries, which left her jaw locked for at least a month.
The single mother suffered several broken teeth in the attack.
Klein was attacked while walking near her home, as her son said: “I want predators and violent attackers to be held accountable, given longer sentences, and They’re just not on the streets.”
A professional home care nurse to an elderly woman with ALS and soon-to-be grandmother, Klein faces a long road to recovery that will require multiple surgeries.
A GoFundMe set up after the attack that has so far raised $100,000 also indicates that Klein’s health insurance dropped her on March 31, just a week before the attack, and that she was in the process of obtaining California coverage when the assault occurred.
Klein’s son, Robert, added that while he was happy to see an arrest had been made, he wondered why such a “predator” was allowed to walk the streets freely.
“I want predators and violent abusers to be held accountable, get longer sentences, and just not be on the streets with our family members.”
Klein said she hoped her attacker would be sentenced to life in prison and hoped local officials would prioritize addressing homelessness and drug addiction in Southern California.
In the GoFundMe intended to help Klein cover his medical expenses, it is noted that the fundraising goal was increased to cover “additional facial reconstruction” and a home security system.
“She is unlikely to be able to return to work for at least 6-8 weeks and she is so worried about losing her small rental in Venice where she and her cat have resided for years,” the fundraiser states.
“Many may know her for the wonderful sand art she builds in Venice for all events.”
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