Suspect charged in Brooklyn Park sexual assault was turned in by stepfather

A man who was arrested on suspicion of sexually assaulting a woman on a creekside trail in Brooklyn Park last week is now facing criminal charges.

Court documents show Cade Alfred Talawalay, 21, of Brooklyn Center is charged with one count each of first-degree criminal sexual conduct and first-degree aggravated robbery.

The victim told police she went for a walk on a trail Wednesday afternoon along Shingle Creek near Pleasant Avenue when a man approached her and took her to a bench, a criminal complaint states. He allegedly pointed a gun in her face, demanded she perform a sex act on him and led her over to a bush.

Afterward, the suspect told the woman he would spare her “unless she told.” He then took her phone and let her go, the complaint states. The victim told investigators she “thought she would die if she did not comply.”

The woman ran away and first told a bus driver what happened to try and get help. She then went back home and told her wife, who called 911.

Police gathered a description of the suspect from the victim and later released images of him taken from surveillance video in the area.

On Saturday, a man reported to police that his stepson, Talawalay, was the person in the photo and then turned him in to law enforcement. Officers found the victim’s cellphone in Talawalay’s room when executing a search warrant.

Talawalay remains in custody at the Hennepin County Jail on $1 million bail. His first court appearance is set for Wednesday afternoon.