UPDATED: Student Indecently Assaulted on Walk Home from School

The assault took place near the intersection of Summer Street and Cutter Hill Road. The child was not physically injured and was with family Tuesday night, Ryan wrote in an email.

The Arlington Police Department is seeking the public’s help in identifying the suspect. He was described as a white male, 20-24 years old, 5-foot-6 to 5-foot-8, 160-170, with heavily gelled, dark brown hair, sunglasses, a dark pea coat and khaki pants.

Anyone with information or questions regarding this incident is asked to contact Inspector Steven Porciello of the Criminal Investigation Bureau at 781-316-3912 or 781-316-3619.

“We are taking this matter very seriously and the Arlington Public Schools and APD will provide appropriate support to the victim and the victim's family,” Ryan wrote.

UPDATE: 10:15 a.m., Wednesday, Feb. 12

From Arlington Police Chief Frederick Ryan on the release of information:

"Many have questioned why the police department has not released the gender of the victim of yesterday’s indecent assault.  Please be advised that we go to extraordinary measures to protect the identity of victims of sexual assault and as a general rule, we intentionally withhold the gender for that very reason.  As a parent of a teenage girl myself I know the importance of handling this sensitively and the importance of protecting the victim’s identity.  Further, while we always release enough information to ensure that residents can ensure their own safety and assist us in our investigation, we intentionally withhold information that could compromise our investigation, future interviews with suspects, and subsequent criminal prosecution(s).

"Again, we are taking this investigation very seriously and we worked hard last night to promptly communicate necessary information to the community and we will continue to do so as the investigation progresses.  Bottom line is that there is little more important to us than the safety of our children and we appreciate the help and patience of the community as we do our difficult and time consuming work."