When a late-night walk in a Fort Collins park turned into an attack Sunday, one woman’s dog came to her rescue, biting her attacker and giving her the opportunity to escape.

Officers responded to a suspicious circumstance report Sunday after 911 dispatchers received a call from a woman around 11 p.m. who could be heard yelling at a man to get off of her, said Fort Collins police spokesperson J. Gilmore.

Dispatchers were able to trace the victim’s phone to Lee Martinez Community Park, Gilmore said.

Officers made contact with the unidentified woman at the park, and she pointed them to a man trailing behind her, Gilmore said. She told officers she had been fending the man off for 20 minutes when her dog bit him in the face, allowing her to escape.

Details about the dog’s age, breed and name were not available.

The victim had no prior relationship with the suspect, Gilmore said. The man arrived in Fort Collins from Boulder on Friday and had been living in the park.

Fort Collins police officers arrested 39-year-old Seth Estabrooks without resistance on suspicion of three felony charges: second-degree assault, strangulation; unlawful sexual contact with force or threat; and false imprisonment by force.

He is being held at the Larimer County Jail with a court date set for May 14.

Estabrooks has previously been convicted in Boulder County for obstructing a peace officer, theft, menacing, felony menacing with a weapon, criminal mischief and drug possession.

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