PORTLAND -- Police are searching for a suspect who sexually assaulted a woman at knifepoint, in her own home and while her family slept just a room away.

Police said a man called 9-1-1 from the Cascade Crossing Apartments at SE 105th and Burnside Street around 5 a.m. Friday. He told officers someone with a knife had assaulted his wife.

"He walked out the back door after he was done. He had a knife to my wife's throat and threatened to kill the kids if she said anything or tried to get away. I was asleep in the front bedroom," the woman's husband told KGW.

The woman told investigators that she had just let her dog out the back door and a man came inside and grabbed a knife out of her kitchen, then he cut her with it and sexually assaulted her.

Photo courtesy: Portland Police Bureau

This is a sketch composite that Portland police believes may match the description of the perpetrator.

Police say they sent several patrol cars, detectives, investigators and a canine unit to the area, searching for the suspect after he fled the apartment.

The victim described the suspect as a black man about 6' tall, weighing more than 200 pounds and wearing a black T-shirt and blue jeans. She said he also had a shaved head.

The woman was transported to a local hospital for treatment, but investigators said her injuries were not life-threatening.

She is suffereing from non-threatening knife wounds on her neck and hip.

Portland Police Officer Catharine Kent describes the crime as a random sexual assault, which is highly out of the ordinary in Portland.

She also said police believe it is a “stranger-to-stranger” crime, meaning that the aggressor did not know the victim.

“It is definitely a public safety issue; we want the public to know that this occurred and to take precautions,” Kent said. “Don't leave your doors and windows open. Be aware of your surroundings.”

Neighbors who live in the complex say they will be making sure to secure their homes.

“I don't think I'll be coming out here at 4:30 or 5 in the morning, walking my dog any more,” said Julie Jimenez, who lives nearby.

The family is asking for public assistance in tracking down the man responsible for the attack. Anyone with information is urged to call 9-1-1 or Portland police.