LITTLETON, Colo. – A sex offender with a history of sex crimes in both Texas and Colorado faces new sex assault and kidnapping charges after he allegedly grabbed a woman off the trail at the Mary Carter Greenway in Littleton Wednesday morning, tied her up and sexually assaulted her.
Johnny Dewayne Harris, 48, is being held on a $1 million bond at the Arapahoe County jail on first-degree kidnapping and sex assault charges after his arrest.
According to a probable cause for Harris’s arrest, the woman was walking her dog along the trail behind the Breckenridge Brewery in Littleton when the alleged assault occurred.
Harris walked up behind the woman and put a rope around her neck, threatening to kill her if she screamed, police wrote in the statement. He then dragged her into some nearby bushes, tore off most of her clothes, bound her hands and feet behind her back, then sexually assaulted her.
When he went to find his glasses, which he’d dropped, the woman was able to free her hands and feet and ran away, screaming for help.
She found a witness, who chased Harris down and held him until police could arrive. The woman’s name is being withheld because Denver7 does not name victims of sexual assault.
The woman was taken to Littleton Hospital with a broken hyoid bone in her neck and other injuries. Harris agreed to speak with police after his arrest, and according to the probable cause statement, admitted to the attack and sexual assault.
Texas sex offender records show that Harris had to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life after a 1999 conviction for assaulting a 15-year-old girl. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison and registered as a sex offender in 2014 upon his release.
But Colorado court records show that he was charged with several sex crimes in January 2016 in Denver, though many of the charges were dropped when he pleaded guilty to indecent exposure. But he failed to register as a sex offender and pleaded guilty in December 2016 for failing to do so. He received an 18-month jail sentence.
Court records show Harris had an advisement hearing Thursday and is scheduled for a return of filing of charges on July 31.
“Although events of this nature are extremely rare in Littleton, and South Platte Park is safe for visitors, citizens should always maintain an awareness of their surroundings and report anything suspicious to the police,” Littleton police wrote in a news release announcing Harris’s arrest.
His mug shot has not been released by police, who say they are not doing so while the investigation is ongoing.
Denver7's Jaclyn Allen contributed to this report.
