Columbia Man Charged in Sexual Assault of 86-Year-Old Woman: Police

A Columbia man has been charged in the sexual assault of an 86-year-old woman off Little Patuxent Parkway, according to the Howard County Police Department.

Michael Lawrence Pinkney, 54, of the 6500 block of Overheart Lane, has been charged with nine offenses, online court records show: first and second-degree rape, first and second-degree sex offense, third-degree assault, sodomy, perverted practice, second-degree assault and kidnapping.

The assault happened over the weekend, according to the report from police. The woman had been waiting at a bus stop in the 7000 block of Cradlerock Way at 2:45 p.m. on Sunday when a stranger offered her a ride, the report said.

After the woman accepted, got into the car and explained where to go, the man turned into an empty parking lot at a business complex in the 10600 block of Little Patuxent Parkway, police said.

The man parked the vehicle, pulled the woman from the car and sexually assaulted her in nearby woods for approximately two hours, according to the report.

Afterward, the woman walked to a gas station nearby, where a customer dialed 911, police said. She was taken to Howard County General Hospital, where she received treatment for her injuries and was released, according to the report.

The woman told police the suspect was driving a dark convertible sedan with tan interior, but she had little additional information, the report said.

Using surveillance video from the area, police identified a car matching the description; however, the tag number was not visible, police said. On surveillance footage, detectives also saw the car with a driver and passenger go to the location of the assault, then depart two hours later without a passenger, according to police.

After an extensive search of the area for a vehicle matching the description, Howard County patrol officers found a black BMW convertible with tan interior on Overheart Lane and learned it was registered to Pinkney, the report said.

With additional intelligence linking Pinkney to the crime, officers served a search warrant at his home in Columbia early Thursday morning, according to police, who said he was being held at the Howard County Detention Center on no bond.

Related: 86-Year-Old Sexually Assaulted in Columbia, Police Say