Employer Accused of Sexually Assaulting Job Applicant

A 60-year-old man has been arrested after he allegedly tried to rape a woman who had applied to work for him in the agriculture industry, the Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office reported Monday.

Manuel "Juan" Cobarruvios Alvarez took the woman to a secluded area on Melody Lane in Watsonville in the guise of a possible employment opportunity in agriculture, according to deputy Ryan Kennedy. There, Alvarez allegedly sexually assaulted the woman, but she was able to stop the attack and convince Alvarez to let her go, Kennedy said.   

The woman reported the attack around 9 p.m. on Sept. 12. Detectives investigated the claim and later arrested Alvarez on suspicion of attempted rape and false imprisonment, according to Kennedy. 

The alleged attack mirrors an incident reported to sheriff's deputies in April, Kennedy said. In that incident, Alvarez also allegedly lured a woman to a secluded area under the pretense of a job opportunity in agriculture, then made unwanted sexual advances on the woman. The woman involved in the April incident also rejected Alvarez, Kennedy said. 

Detectives are concerned that other victims may exist from similar situations in which Alvarez has deceptively used possible employment as way to take women to a secluded area and assault them, Kennedy said. If you have any information regarding this case, please contact the Sheriff’s Office at (831) 471-1121.