Sexual assault suspected at local hotel

Police are investigating the possible sexual assault of a 20-year-old woman found floating motionless in a spa at the Ramada Limited & Suites in Costa Mesa Sunday morning.

The police responded to a suspected drowning when someone found her shortly after 7 a.m., said Lt. Paul Dondero. Police and fire department paramedics responded to the call and removed the woman from the spa. She was conscious and breathing when they arrived, according to the police report.

Detectives are looking into whether there were other people in the Jacuzzi with her.

“One of the things they’ll be doing is trying to put together the missing pieces of who she’s been with and then trying to identify the suspects,” Dondero said.

The woman, whose name has not been released, was taken to Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian for treatment.

Officials at the Ramada hotel on Superior Avenue declined to comment on the ongoing investigation.

ALAN BLANK may be reached at (714) 966-4623 or at [email protected].