A 21-year-old homeless man suspected of sexually abusing two girls in Long Beach was arrested Friday.

According to Long Beach police, officers responded to the intersection of Carson Street and Atlantic Avenue around 10:15 a.m. Thursday morning for a report of a sexual assault involving a girl.

According to police, the girl was on a bus when she was approached by an unknown man. The girl and the man both got off the bus, and after a “brief verbal exchange,” the suspect “proceeded to sexually assault the victim,”
according to the police.

Shortly before 11 a.m. Thursday, the suspect allegedly approached another girl on a bus near Artesia Boulevard and Atlantic Avenue. He followed the girl off the bus and sexually assaulted her, police said.

Investigators described the suspect as a 5-foot-8-inch man weighing 180 pounds with black hair and brown eyes. He also has several small tattoos on his forearms.

He was later identified as George Marquez and booked on suspicion of attempted rape, penetration with a foreign object and having two warrants for terrorizing a victim and causing fear and assault, police said. Marquez was being held on $242,000 bail.

Anyone with information about the alleged sexual assaults is urged to contact Detective William Neal of the LBPD Sex Crimes Detail at 562-570-7368. Tipsters who wish to remain anonymous may contact Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477.
or visit lacrimestoppers.org.