Sept. 02--Neighbors remained shaken and eager for answers Tuesday after the weekend stabbing and sexual assault of a woman at her home in suburban Willowbrook.
"I was outside the other day and I thought maybe I was unsafe," said Matt Szilagyi, whose family lives about a block away from the scene of the attack, a quiet residential street usually characterized by trees with bird feeder collections and patio chairs set up on front lawns.
As police continued to search for a suspect, and the Illinois State Crime Commission announced a $5,000 reward in the case, nearby residents said the crime was a reminder to lock doors and not take safety for granted.
"It's scary," said Dominca Kaphusman, 80. "The things you don't have to do, you're doing now."
The victim, in her 20s, was loading her car in a driveway in the 700 block of 73rd Court around 1:10 p.m. Saturday when a dark blue Nissan Altima pulled up and a man approached and asked for money, Willowbrook police said.
She refused and went into the home, but the man knocked on a side door and asked to use her phone. He forced his way inside and stabbed her several times and sexually assaulted her, according to police and family.
The Tribune is not naming the woman or her family because of the nature of the crime.
The victim fought back "as hard as she could," her sister said. "The doctors were amazed that all these knife wounds missed major arteries and organs."
After the attacker left, the woman ran to a neighbor's house, where police were called. The suspect fled in the Altima, which had tinted windows and a "wind reflector" where the sunroof is, police said.
The woman told police the car had a bicentennial Indiana license plate. A car matching the description was towed early Monday from a street in Brookfield.
The suspect being sought was described as black, in his 30s, about 5-foot-10 and 160 to 180 pounds, who was wearing a blue short-sleeved shirt and dark-colored khaki shorts with white socks, police said. At the time of the incident, his dark hair was combed back with "dread-type curls on the end," said Deputy Chief Mark Altobella, of the Willowbrook Police Department. He was unshaven, police said.
A person fitting the suspect's description might have been in the area earlier in the week, and police are interviewing neighbors a second time. Police took sketches to residents in the area and a nearby strip mall, police Chief Mark Shelton said.
"They were going door to door telling everyone to lock up and be safe," the victim's sister said.
Neighbors on the victim's block barricaded the street with garbage cans Tuesday to prevent visits from media and gawkers. One woman, who did not identify herself, said neighbors made a pact not to speak with any more reporters out of respect for the family.
Police did not return calls seeking updates Tuesday.
A GoFundMe page, set up by the sister to help cover medical expenses and lost wages while the woman recovers, had raised more than $35,540 by Tuesday afternoon, mostly in donations of $25 to $100 from about 540 people.
The Felony Investigative Assistance Team's Major Crimes Unit is helping the Willowbrook Police Department investigate the crime. Officers from 14 area police departments, including Burr Ridge, Hinsdale, Clarendon Hills, Darien and Oak Brook, are members of the team.
"We have an investigator assisting as needed," said Hinsdale police Sgt. Mark Wodka.
Police asked anyone with information to call 630-325-2808 or 630-325-2121.
Pioneer Press' Kimberly Fornek contributed.
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