Eight Rhode Island men sexually assaulted 16-year-old unconscious girl at party, charged after video comes out
PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND: Eight men have been charged for sexually assaulting an unconscious teenage girl at a party. The charges against the men came after the 16-year-old victim’s mother found the video of the assault on Facebook and informed police about it.
According to police and court records, the incident happened in December last. The girl told investigators in Providence that she woke up in an apartment with vaginal pain on December 20. She also found cuts on her thighs. The teenager said that since she was unconscious at the time, the memory of the incident is blurred. She recalled herself being naked in a bathroom shower while around 15 men laughed at her. Those men also probably took pictures of her before she was taken to a bedroom, The New York Post reported.
Reports stated that the victim approached the police the next day, but could not provide full names of the men involved. She only gave some of the suspects’ first names, including two men who brought her to the party. But the incomplete information did not help the police in finding the men. However, the case took a new turn in June this year when a video surfaced on Facebook showing the men sexually assaulting the naked and unconscious teen. While some men assaulted her, others watched. “The video was more than enough to see the crime and identify the culprits. It is sickening to see it. It was tough on the investigators. They did a really good job,” Providence Police Major David Lapatin said.
The victim’s mother also got to know about the video, who then informed police about it, Lapatin told The NY Post. “It obviously moved our case right along. That’s when it really picked up steam and we were able to identify many suspects from the video and shortly thereafter, arrests were made,” the police major added. As per reports, arrest warrants for eight men were issued, out of which seven were arrested last week. One suspect identified as 19-year-old Carlos Vasquez is still at large. He is facing charges of assault with intent to commit first-degree sexual assault on a person who was mentally incapacitated and conspiracy, Lapatin said.
Richard Tarell Chester, who is among the men arrested, has been charged with first-degree sexual assault on a person who was mentally incapacitated and conspiracy. Chester was reportedly seen in the footage raping the girl, an affidavit in support of a search warrant stated. The 20-year-old has been held without bond in Rhode Island.
The other men arrested in the case have been charged with assault with intent to commit first-degree sexual assault on a person who was mentally incapacitated, and conspiracy. The identities of them have also been revealed. They are Luis Cabrera, 19; Jose Vargas, 19; Erving Keith Colon, 25; Malcom Baptista, 19; and Luis N Luna, 19, and Carlos Chicon, 20. They all belong to Providence and have been indicted, but none of them entered a plea.
Vargas, Luna, and Cabrera have their attorneys, but it was not clear if Colon, Baptista, and Chicon have any lawyer. Also, reports stated that a public defender will represent Chester. While speaking of the victim, Lapatin said, “She’s in a safe place and she’s doing OK.”