KAHULUI, Maui — A 72-year-old Maui woman scared off a man who grabbed her from behind and tried to pull her to a dark roadside area early yesterday, becoming the fourth older resident since May 30 to fall victim to an attacker.

Police said the woman was walking along Holua Drive shortly after 5 a.m. when she noticed a jogger going south on the street. Suddenly, the woman felt a hand over her mouth as the man tried to drag her away, police said. She sounded a hand-held electric alarm she was carrying, and the attacker fled north on Holua Drive, police said. The woman did not need medical attention, police said.

Yesterday's attack occurred in a residential neighborhood within a few miles of two other Kahului attacks in which women were raped. The other incident, also a rape, was in Kihei, about 10 miles south of Kahului, in central Maui.

Police are not ruling out the possibility the crimes were committed by the same person.

The previous victims were ages 87, 78 and 82. Two women were raped during home invasions, but a third was walking around 5:30 a.m. when she was forced into bushes and assaulted.

John Tomoso, who heads Maui County's Office on Aging, said his office is receiving more calls from people concerned about their safety.

"The cautionary level is being raised. People are shaking their heads," he said. "Gone are the days of small-town Maui when you knew everyone."

Tomoso said Maui is starting to see big-city problems and older folks are going to have to take more responsibility dealing with their personal safety.

At Hale Mahaolu, officials have increased night surveillance and residents have been cautioned to remain vigilant.

"I think they realize it's a vulnerable time. They have to be more cautious," said Roy Katsuda, executive director of the nonprofit housing corporation that runs the senior residential community.

Lt. Glenn Cuomo of the Maui Police Department's Criminal Investigation Division, said "substantial manpower" is being dedicated to the four cases. It also has turned to "other agencies" to develop a profile of those responsible. Cuomo declined to specify the assisting agencies.

Cuomo said yesterday's attack might have been classified as an ordinary assault in previous years. But given recent history, police had no choice but to place it in the sex-assault category.

Investigators also are examining previous assault cases involving elderly victims to check for connections, Cuomo said, noting that so far no link has been found.

Yesterday's attacker was described as being 6 feet to 6 feet 3 and wearing dark pants and a green Army-type jacket. After an Aug. 17 attack in Kihei, the attacker was described as a slim man, 6 feet tall and wearing black pants and a gray tank top.

The first attack occurred at 3 a.m. May 30, when an 87-year-old woman was raped in the bedroom of her Kahului home. The intruder broke a window to enter the house and stole a purse.

On June 14, a 78-year-old resident of the Hale Mahaolu senior residential community in Kahului was walking on Wakea Avenue around 5:30 a.m. when she was forced into bushes and assaulted.

On Aug. 17, an 82-year-old Kihei woman was raped by a man who entered her home through an unlocked window.

There were 17 reported sex assaults in Maui County last year, 24 in 2003 and 10 in 2002, police said.

Police officials are urging seniors to take extra precautions.

Police Sgt. Jaime Becraft said seniors should walk in groups. But if walking alone, he suggests carrying a cell phone or electronic alarm. At home, Becraft said, lock doors and windows and epoxy-glue window jalousies so they can't be removed.

In addition, Becraft recommends forming and maintaining neighborhood watch programs that keep an eye on homes. While there are 500 such programs on Maui, only about half are active, Becraft said.

Reach Timothy Hurley at thurley@honoluluadvertiser.com.