WPBPD is looking for more victims after the sexual assault of a 13-year-old girl, the suspect faces new charges

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) — Investigators fear an illegal immigrant accused of sexual assault may have preyed on other victims. On Monday, they urged anyone with knowledge of other attacks to come forward.

According to the West Palm Beach Police Department, Santo Omar Martinez Varela approached a 13-year-old girl around 11 p.m. on January 3 near Pinehurst Park and Forest Hill Blvd in West Palm Beach and began sexually assaulting her.

After nine days of searching for an unknown suspect, Martinez Varela was found reserved booked into Palm Beach County Jail on charges of sexual assault of a minor and false imprisonment. After his arrest, deputies put together a puzzle connecting him to other unsolved crimes.

A search of Martinez Varela’s home led investigators to evidence linking the suspect to a robbery involving a sudden kidnapping, a robbery with a firearm and a kidnapping during the commission of a crime.

See also: A teenager escapes from a fake prison after meeting a fake security guard at the PSL hotel

On the night of December 26, a woman was walking near Dudley Drive E and Cresthaven Blvd. in West Palm Beach when the incident occurred. The suspect, sitting in an older model sedan, waited for the victim to approach.

Deputies say he then exited the vehicle, brandished a firearm and tried to grab her purse.

According to PBSO, after a short struggle, the suspect got into a car and fled the scene.

The victim told authorities the suspect was a Hispanic male, approximately 5-foot-10, with a medium build and curly dark hair.

Investigators published a sketch based on the suspect’s description.

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