Summer camp staffer, 27, arrested in sexual assault of girl, 11, at UC Berkeley dorm

BERKELEY, Calif. - A 27-year-old man is in jail, accused by UC Berkeley police of sexually assaulting an 11-year-old girl at a campus residence hall over the weekend.

The attack was reported early Saturday morning to campus police. KTVU is not naming the suspect because he has not been formally charged. The university says he is not a UC Berkeley employee. 

Suspect works at summer camp

What we know:

"The suspect in the case was actually some kind of staffer with a summer camp," said Emilie Raguso of the Berkeley Scanner, who broke the news that the suspect worked for a camp.

"Early indications are that it was a girl who was at a sleepover camp. What we don't know yet is what camp was this," Raguso said.

DA to review case

What's next:

He is being held at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin in lieu of $425,000 bail. Alameda County prosecutors will review the case to determine whether he will formally be charged.

A woman believed to be a relative of the suspect hung up on a KTVU reporter when asked for comment on Monday.

In an alert to the UC Berkeley community, campus police wrote in part, "The incident was initially reported to UCPD as an attempted sexual assault in a residence hall. Through subsequent investigation, UCPD determined that the incident was a completed sexual assault, rather than an attempted one."

But authorities would not specify which residence hall was involved, citing a federal law that protects victims of sexual assault.

Alleged attack happened at Foothill housing complex

What we know:

KTVU, however, has learned the incident was reported at the Foothill housing complex, a series of wood-shingled buildings surrounded by trees near Hearst Avenue and Gayley Road in the northeast part of the campus.

"From our perspective, it's devastating to hear that an 11-year-old" was reportedly victimized, said Steve Ravellette, president of Safe Bears," a group of UC Berkeley parents concerned about campus safety. He has a daughter at the university and says the incident raises questions about potential liability. 

"It's on a campus property and in what respect is the university, what type of control that they have in terms of requirements for camps coming in," Ravellette said.

On Monday, a group of parents and potential students were out on a campus tour near Sather Gate, including Lisa Marshall and her son Hunter of Walnut Creek.

"Absolutely, it's concerning, but this isn't the only college that I would have heard that something like this has happened," Lisa Marshall said. "So I think it's about educating the kids that are going to be going to school there and making sure that the campus does everything they can to prevent something like that."

Hunter Marshall said, "Of course, I do think they should be doing background checks and things like that, but I don't think it necessarily affects whether I want to go to a school like this."

Henry Lee is a KTVU crime reporter. E-mail Henry at Henry.Lee@fox.com and follow him on X @henrykleeKTVU and www.facebook.com/henrykleefan

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