CLERMONT, Fla. – A 16-year-old girl asleep on a couch in her Clermont home was attacked by an intruder, according to deputies.
Lake County deputies said the man entered the Morning Star Drive home via a sliding-glass door around 3 a.m. Saturday and attacked JoAnne Conroy, who was sleeping on the couch.
"I woke up to a guy strangling me but I tried to get his hands off and he was getting on top of me so I tried kicking him off of me," she said.
JoAnne told deputies the man choked her and punched her in the face when she struggled against him.
"So when I was kicking him he punched me in the face and gave me bloody nose and a bruised cheek," she said.
The teen told Local 6 that she fought back, kicking and screaming during the attack. She was not seriously injured, but she was left bloodied and bruised from the beating.
"He didn't say one word," JoAnne said. "I never heard his voice."
Deputies said the man then left the home through the same door.
Three women and a 4-year-old girl were asleep inside the home at the time of the attack.
The culprit was described by deputies as a black man, 25 to 30 years old, about 6 feet tall, 230 pounds, with brown eyes and black hair.
The man was wearing a black shirt, tan pants, silver watch, rectangle-shaped silver glasses and square diamond studded earrings, according to deputies.
Deputies said they don't believe JoAnne, initially identified by police as 14 years old, knew the attacker.
JoAnne tells Local 6 that her friend believes the man has been loitering in the neighborhood.
Anyone with information about the man is urged to call Crimeline at 800-423-TIPS.