Above: Location of the APD reported incident

Arcata Police Department press release: 

Wilson

On September 20, 2016 at 7:45am, the Arcata Police Department received a report of a man, later identified as 28-year-old Dylan Jackson Wilson of Arcata, loitering on a footpath between Baldwin Street and Stromberg Avenue. It was reported that Wilson was seen in possession of a hypodermic needle. 

Within minutes of the first call, several 911 calls were placed to the APD reporting an assault and that Wilson was seen running from the area. 

Responding officers located Wilson hiding in a nearby backyard where he was taken into custody without further incident.
 
The subsequent investigation revealed that Wilson grabbed a 12-year-old child while she was walking along the footpath on her way to school. Wilson threw the child to the ground and was on top of her when a parent, who had walked past Wilson moments earlier, intervened. The parent had stayed in the area because she was suspicious of Wilson. 

The child sustained minor physical injuries.

Entrance to the footpath at the end of Baldwin Street leading to Cahill Park on Stromberg Avenue

Wilson was booked at the Humboldt County Correctional Facility on the following charges:
 
-Penal Code Section 220(a)(2) - Assault with Intent to Commit Lewd Acts on a Child

-Penal Code Section 236 - False Imprisonment

[LoCO Note: In addition to today’s alleged horror, Wilson was arrested in 2011 for allegedly yelling at a group of Blue Lake Elementary School First graders that he would “murder” them. He was arrested again in 2014 in connection with a burglary at Big Louis Pizzeria in Eureka.]

PREVIOUSLY: Arcata Police Arrest One for Assault Outside Arcata Elementary School This Morning