12-year-old girl wakes to find stranger touching her face, California police say

A 12-year-old girl woke after falling asleep on her couch at night to find a stranger touching her face, California police say.

The startled girl dashed off to alert her family while the accused intruder bolted from the home, stealing a set of car keys at 12:30 a.m. Monday, Aug. 28, Riverside police said in a news release.

Officers responding to the incident arrested Daveon Alvarez, 28, whom they describe as being homeless, down the street from the home, police said.

Alvarez faces charges including annoying or molesting a child, burglary, attempted auto theft and violation of parole, police said.

Neighbors reported seeing Alvarez inside vehicles outside the house before he entered the home through an unlocked door, police said.

Officers thanked the young girl for “being brave and providing enough information to put this criminal in jail.”

Alvarez is being held without bail, police said.

Riverside is about 55 miles east of Los Angeles.

This story was originally published August 29, 2023 at 9:45 AM with the headline "12-year-old girl wakes to find stranger touching her face, California police say."