UCLA police name man arrested on suspicion of sexually assaulting student in dorm

LOS ANGELES-CA-MARCH 28, 2023: On campus at UCLA on March 23, 2023. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)
UCLA police say the suspect in custody is not affiliated with the school — the site of Friday's early-morning assault of a student in her dorm room at Saxon Suites. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

The man suspected of sexually assaulting a UCLA student in her dorm room early Friday is 41 years old and not affiliated with the university, campus police said Saturday.

Jeffery Brewer has been arrested on suspicion of forcible sexual penetration, burglary, false imprisonment and assault with intent to commit a felony. Bail was set at $1,050,000.

It was around 2:40 a.m. Friday when a man entered Saxon Suites residential dorms by unknown means and assaulted the student in her bed, the UCLA Police Department said in a news release.

The incident was reported immediately after the man fled the room, police said. The man was described as being heavy-set with a curly beard, wearing all-black clothing and a beanie.

After searching all day, officers located and apprehended the suspect around 9:45 p.m. Friday. The victim and two witnesses positively identified him, campus police said.

The victim, whose age was not provided, received medical treatment at the scene, according to the news release.

Brewer was previously arrested by UCLA police on July 11 last year on unspecified misdemeanor charges, according to the L.A. County Sheriff's Inmate Information Center.

UCLA has had more sexual assaults reported than any other school in the 10-campus University of California system — 36 between April 2023 and March 2024. Overall, 1,975 crimes were reported at UCLA during that period — larceny and theft being the largest category, with 441 reports, UC systemwide data show. The vast majority of arrests involved suspects who were not affiliated with the university of about 46,680 students.

UC Berkeley, the system's second-largest university, with about 45,700 students, had 14 reports of sexual assaults among 2,222 crimes reported between April 2023 and March 2024. Larceny, theft and motor vehicle theft were the largest issues there, accounting for 1,000 reported crimes; most suspects also were not affiliated with the campus.

UC Santa Barbara had 18 reports of sexual assault, UC Davis 14 and UC Irvine 13 between April 2023 and March 2024. Nine were reported in that period at UC Santa Cruz, seven at UC Riverside, six at UC San Diego, and five each at UC Merced and UC San Francisco.

UCLA police encourage students to report any suspicious activity to them at (310) 825-1491.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.