Woman, dog allegedly assault bicyclist outside public restroom in downtown Olympia
An unfortunate bicyclist was allegedly beaten with a plastic tube and bitten by a dog after taking too long at a public restroom in downtown Olympia on Thursday.
Olympia police responded at 9:20 p.m. to a Portland Loo unit on Fourth Avenue East, Lt. Paul Lower said. The scene, which is near shops and restaurants, drew a large group of people who directed police to the alleged attacker.
“That’s just a super busy area with tons of restaurants, so I see how this got some attention,” Lower said.
Witnesses told police a 30-year-old woman got upset with a 57-year-old man who occupied the loo, Lower said. As he attempted to leave, Lower said the woman attacked him using the tube.
“When he comes out and gets on his bike, they had a quick verbal argument,” Lower said. “The female shoved him to the ground and began kicking and hitting him.”
Reading from an incident report, Lower described the tube as “similar to what kids use to blow bubbles.” Some witnessed described it as a baton, but police determined it could not have caused serious injury.
During the incident, Lower said a seemingly unrelated person who was walking a dog passed by. The dog allegedly bit the man’s ankle, he said, but the dog walker managed to get the dog away.
Police arrested the woman for simple assault, Lower said, and she was cited and released at the scene.
The responding officer offered the bicyclist and the woman medical attention from the fire department, Lower said, but both parties refused.
This story was originally published August 20, 2021 at 10:37 AM.
