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Police search for man who raped woman on Bayshore Boulevard

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By TOM BRENNAN | The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 30, 2010

Updated: 07/30/2010 09:41 pm

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Luis Marcelo Munuzuri Harris

TAMPA - Police are looking a man posing as a police officer who raped a woman on Bayshore Boulevard on Thursday.

The victim was driving on Bayshore at about 10 p.m. when the man flagged her down using a blue laser flashlight near Howard Avenue.

The man said he was an undercover narcotics officer and told the woman he pulled her over because he believed she was intoxicated.

"He was a brazen, bold individual violating the public's trust," said Jim Contento, a Tampa police spokesman.

Contento said officers are "very upset" with an imposter preying on the public, especially after the outpouring of support the department received after the killings of Officers Dave Curtis and Jeffrey Kocab on June 29.

"Detectives are out there working really hard and pound the pavement," he said. "This is not one of those cases where they are going to put the case down and go home tonight and pick it back up on Monday."

The imposter handcuffed the victim, who police said was between the ages of 25 and 30. The man had her get into the rear seat of his vehicle, which was parked in the median of Bayshore. The suspect told her he was going to take her to jail, but drove around before taking her to a bank in Hyde Park, where he used the victim's debit card to withdraw money from the ATM machine.

The man then drove her back to the area of her vehicle. He parked his car on Bayshore near Patriot's Park then climbed into the back seat and raped the woman. The suspect then allowed her to leave his car.

The suspect told the victim he would follow her home, but within a few blocks he disappeared. The victim continued home and immediately called police.

The suspect is possibly a Hispanic male, 6 feet 2 inches to 6 feet 4 inches tall and weighing 190 pounds. He has a dark complexion and was last seen wearing a gray T-shirt and dark jeans.

He was driving a gray colored four-door sedan. Anyone who spots the car parked in the median should call 911.

Contento said police officers will always have identification.

"Police in T-shirts and jeans don't flag down people with a flashlight," he said.

He said if anyone has doubts about the legitimacy of an officer they should drive slowly to a well-lighted area and call 911 to confirm they are being pulled over by an officer.

"Someone (in the 911 communications office) will always know what's going on," he said.

Reporter Tom Brennan can be reached at (813) 259-7698.

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