WYANDOTTE (WWJ) – Police in Wyandotte are searching for a man who attacked and raped a woman in an alleyway behind a grocery store after she got locked out of her apartment.

The incident happened around 10 p.m. Tuesday near the Save-A-Lot store on Fort Street off of Grove Street, just south of Eureka Road.

According to police, the 25-year-old woman arrived home to find she was locked out of her apartment. Unable to contact her roommate, the woman decided to walk to the grocery store, cutting through a back alley. It was there the woman noticed a man, standing about 20 feet away from her, she told police.

When the woman turned her back to close a fence gate, the man grabbed her from behind, police said. The woman tried to fight him off, but was beaten and raped before the assailant took off on foot.

The woman was taken to an area hospital for treatment.

The suspect is described as a white man, about 6-feet tall with short, light-colored hair. He was wearing a yellow shirt with black writing, black cargo pants and bright yellow shoes with black and blue coloring.

Police were called to the scene and a K-9 unit tried to track the suspect, but came up with nothing. Investigators were still on the scene Wednesday morning, searching for evidence.

Police Chief Daniel Grant said investigators are trying to obtain surveillance camera footage from nearby businesses.

“We’re going to look to see if there’s any more physical evidence,” Grant told WWJ’s Ron Dewey. “We’ll have detectives and officers checking the area and doing follow-ups to check to see who might be in the area that might fit a suspect description that might be, say, a registered sex offender or anything along that line.”

Grant said such a malicious crime is very uncommon in the Downriver suburb and people should remember the basics for their safety — always be aware of your surroundings and stay in well-lit, populated areas if out late at night.

“We’re going to work very hard on this, and I don’t think anybody needs to be alarmed,” he said. “We’ll be watching the area very closely but at the same time, we’re going to work very diligently to bring this case to an end and bring the person responsible to justice.”

Anyone who might have information on the incident is urged to contact police at 734-324-4405.