Car stolen from 70-year-old Cedar Rapids woman found in Arkansas

A car stolen from a 70-year-old Cedar Rapids woman after she was sexually assaulted has been recovered in Arkansas, police said Wednesday.

According to police, two men kicked in the front door of the woman's residence in the 1400 block of Center Point Road NE around 3 a.m. Oct. 1 and demanded money from the woman, who was sleeping on the couch. When the woman couldn't produce any money, the suspects severely beat her in the head and body, causing a gash that took doctors more than an hour to mend.

While one of the suspects was looking for money, the other sexually assaulted the victim, police said. When they left with a small amount of money, they stole the victim's Chrysler Sebring. The entire robbery and assault took place in about an hour's time.

“These two are truly animals and they need to be locked up,” Sgt. Cristy Hamblin said on Oct. 5.

No arrests have been made in the case, but the car was located in North Little Rock, Ark. on Friday. Police there will forward results of their part of the investigation to Cedar Rapids.

Hamblin said investigators will likely be looking for finger prints, gas receipts or anything else left behind in the vehicle.

Both suspects are black males in their 20s with slender builds, and both were wearing black hooded sweat shirts and black pants. One was about 5-foot-10 and the other was taller, around 6 feet tall.

Police viewed surveillance video from gas stations nearby, but did not get any clues. One of the suspects referenced a family member of the victim during the break-in, and Hamblin said investigators are still following up to see if there is a connection. No other leads have surfaced in the case, she said.

Anyone who has information about the case or was in the area at the time is asked to call police at (319) 286-5400 or 1-800-CR-CRIME.