RAINIER BEACH – Police are searching for a teenager they say assaulted and robbed a woman Monday morning in the 9200 block of Rainier Avenue South.

It was about 10:15 am when a witness watched three teenagers follow the 58-year old woman through the Safeway parking lot. One of the teens knocked her down and took her purse while the other two watched.

“During the attack, the victim struck her head on the pavement and sustained injuries to the left side of her face and cheek area,” wrote SPD spokesperson Renee Witt.

She added that the victim was transported to Harborview Medical Center with non-life threatening injuries.

The suspect – described as a black male teen, wearing a short black coat and blue jeans – fled the scene.

According to police, the subjects seen walking with the suspect remained at the scene. They were subsequently detained and transported to the South Precinct for further investigation, where they were ultimately released pending further investigation.

South Precinct officers and detectives are investigating an increase in street robberies in the area.

Anyone with information about this incident or who may know the identity or whereabouts of the suspect is asked to call 911.