A man pushed a student into her car and attempted to sexually assault her shortly before noon yesterday in the Park Avenue Garage, police said.

The incident was the sixth sex crime to occur on campus in a week, but police do not think yesterdayâs occurrence was related to the others, which happened in residence hall bathrooms.

The woman told police she was getting out of her car on the third floor of the garage when the man grabbed her, pushed her back in and tried to sexually assault her, said University of Arizona Police Department Sgt. Mike Smith.

The man ran off, but the woman did not know in which direction he fled, Smith said.

The suspect was described as more than 6 feet tall, in his 20s, with black spiky hair and tan shorts.

Smith called the incident ãsurprisingä because it happened in the middle of the day, and said the woman did nothing to place herself at risk.

ãIt creates a perception of insecurity,ä said Matthew Kruer, a booth attendant at the Park Avenue Garage. ãPeople just feel less safe than they used to.ä

As of yesterday afternoon, Smith said no additional security measures were being taken in the garages, but he also said police already patrol them routinely because of the frequency of car break-ins.

Still, some students are fearful for their safety in the garages.

ãI donât think I would feel safe at night,ä said health education senior Carmon Greene.

The latest incident also ãraises a sense of urgencyä to allow SafeRide cars into parking garages so they can take students directly to their cars, said SafeRide Director Craig Haubrich, who has been working to get garage-access passes for drivers.

Currently, SafeRide canât take passengers into garages because drivers have no way of getting in and out without paying the exit fee.

The location of yesterdayâs incident also adds a new twist to the recent rash of sexual assaults, which until yesterday had been limited to the residence halls.

Tuesday night, a man wearing a ski mask entered a womenâs restroom in La Paz Residence Hall and attempted to sexually assault a resident as she was showering.

That suspect, who is still at large, is described as 5 feet 9 inches tall, with a thin build and blue eyes. The night of the incident, he was wearing dark clothes.

Saturday, Tucsonan Esteban Rodriguez was arrested at his home on the west side of Tucson after allegedly watching women shower in three residence halls and leading police on a car chase west of campus.

As of last night, Rodriguez was still in custody at Pima County Jail.

The series of sex crimes is the most serious that Smith could remember in his 10 years with UAPD.

ãI wish I knew why everythingâs happening now,ä he said.

From 1997-2001, the combined number of sexual assaults and attempted sexual assaults reported to UAPD in a year has never exceeded six, according to statistics on the UAPD Web site. From 1998-2000, police made zero sexual-assault arrests.

All residence halls are still under a 24-hour lockdown, and police have increased foot patrols in the dorms as a result of those incidents, said university spokeswoman Sharon Kha.

Smith said that vigilance is key in curbing those incidents and that students must be especially aware of their own safety.

ãThere are 50,000 eyes and ears on this campus,ä he said.