Man suspected of assaulting several women hiking at Carlsbad's Calavera Preserve

A 22-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly striking women on their buttocks as he passed them at the Calavera Preserve in Carlsbad.

Felix Blanco of Oceanside was arrested on Friday and booked into jail on seven counts of alleged sexual battery, according to the Carlsbad Police Department. Authorities say they received several reports of a male suspect riding an electric bike approaching women hiking on the trail and then assaulting them.

Blanco was arrested Friday following reports of a similar incident and a description provided by the victim.

Sheila Mulligan enjoys running along the trails there.

“It’s way more fun than running on the road,” Mulligan said.

Mulligan has always had a positive experience running there but was disheartened to learn others have not.

Sara Mccurdy and her friend Leah Bose said they use the buddy system when they go hiking.

“Knowing that somebody is targeting women in that way is always a really scary and unfortunate thing,” Mccurdy said.

While they were relieved to know a suspect was arrested, they said they would still be taking measures to protect themselves.

“I also have a GPS live tracker on my watch, which I think is pretty helpful, because the people that are important to me are connected to that and could kind of see where I’m at just in the event that something happened,” Mulligan said.

It’s unknown how many victims were targeted by Blanco, but he was arrested and charged with seven counts of sexual assault. He is booked at the Vista Detention Facility.

“It is really important that we are able to feel safe if we choose to go somewhere, alone,” Mccurdy said. “You shouldn’t always have to feel this anxiety that you know you could be targeted.”

Blanco is expected to appear in court on Tuesday.