Suspect sought after alleged sex assault on Nanaimo bus

Police are trying to identify a suspect in an alleged sexual assault in Nanaimo on July 11, 2024. (Handout)

Authorities are asking for the public's help identifying a suspect in an alleged sexual assault that took place on a crowded bus in downtown Nanaimo last month.

The incident was reported on a number 40 bus – the VIU Express – sometime between 5:10 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. on July 11, according to Nanaimo RCMP.

In a news release, the detachment said a young person was in a window seat when a stranger "sat beside them, rubbed against them with his arm, and slide his hand down their hip and leg."

When the victim picked up her bag to leave, the stranger rang the buzzer and exited the bus at 5th Street and Shepherd Avenue, authorities said.

On Thursday, the RCMP released a suspect image and asked anyone who recognizes him to come forward.

The suspect is described as a white man in his late-20s to early-30s, with blue eyes, brown hair and a brown beard. He was wearing black glasses, black shorts, black flip-flops and a button-up shirt with a white and orange pattern at the time of the incident.