Meyer, AZ (AZFamily) — Police have arrested a man after he sexually assaulted a woman in Yavapai County last year.
On August 17, 2023, Yavapai County Sheriff's deputies received a report of a sexual assault in Meyer, about 26 miles from Prescott. The 47-year-old victim told investigators that a man dressed in construction gear offered her a ride in his water truck. According to sheriff's deputies, the man threatened the victim with a gun, took her to a secluded area and sexually assaulted her.
He released her and when she returned home, she immediately called the sheriff's office, according to authorities. Authorities obtained a DNA sample and identified the suspect through a national database as 36-year-old Brian Jacob Hernandez of Mesa.
Investigators said they searched Hernandez's Mesa home on Thursday, April 12, and found evidence of the sexual assault in his vehicle and at his home. He was taken into custody on suspicion of sexual assault, kidnapping and aggravated assault. He was then extradited to Yavapai County and booked into the Camp Verde Correctional Facility.
The Yavapai County Sheriff's Office said they are still seeking more information about Hernandez, who has been seen in northern Arizona, Scottsdale and Mesa since 2017. Authorities say the suspect works in highway construction and previously identified himself as a truck driver.
Hernandez is described as a Hispanic male, 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighing 215 pounds, with brown eyes, balding hair and a dark brown beard. Prior to his arrest, Hernandez was known to drive large construction trucks, including a 2017 black Ford F-150 pickup truck equipped with off-road tires.
Anyone with more information about Hernandez is asked to call Yavapai County Sheriff's Office detectives at 928-771-3260.
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