Arizona congressional candidate Bernadette Greene-Placentia says she was raped while fixing a campaign sign

Bernadette Greene-Placentia, the Democratic candidate in Arizona's 8th Congressional District, says she was raped this summer while repairing one of her campaign signs.

She told the Phoenix New Times the attack happened around 2 a.m. on Aug. 14 in a parking lot in Sun City, a retirement community northwest of Phoenix.

Her account

Greene-Placentia says she was struck on the head and briefly lost consciousness. She says she woke to find a man on top of her sexually assaulting her and that he insulted her before getting up.

She says a second man then approached and tried to force her legs apart. When she kicked at him, she says, he dismissed her and walked away. Both men then left her lying face down in the lot.

Greene-Placentia says she managed to drive herself home but remembers little of what happened afterward. She told the newspaper she has only small flashes of memory and has tried hard to recall more.

The investigation

The Maricopa County Sheriff's Office confirmed she filed a report on Aug. 31 and said the investigation is ongoing. No arrests have been announced.

Greene-Placentia says she felt embarrassed at first and wanted to forget the attack. She decided to speak publicly because her campaign focuses on supporting survivors of sexual assault.