Michigan Sex Crime Attorneys Blog

October 28, 2015

Missouri Men Arrested for Alleged Sexual Assault of Teen

On Sunday October 25, two Fulton, MO men were arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl after giving her alcohol and drugs, according to a recent article at Fox 2 News.

The men, 42-year-old Brent Gibson and 26-year-old Lucas Pickering, have been charged with second-degree statutory rape, first-degree endangering the welfare of a child, possession of a controlled substance, and other offenses. The men reportedly raped the girl in a motel room in Kingdom City after injecting what the victim believed was methamphetamine into her arm.

An officer who interviewed the girl said that she had two needle puncture marks on her arm, consistent with her story that she was injected twice. Tests also revealed marijuana in the victim’s blood. She told investigators that both men raped her while she was awake, but incapacitated by the alcohol and drugs. A probable cause statement revealed that Pickering gave the victim meth that he snorted and smoked with her, and bought her alcohol.

October 14, 2015

Modesto Man Faces Sexual Assault Charges in Incidents Involving Two Women

by Scott Grabel

On the morning of October 14, 33-year-old Garry Chow of Modesto was arrested in connection with the sexual assault and attempted sexual assault of two women who believed they were responding to an ad for a modeling job on the Internet. The two incidents occurred on Sept. 10 in Redwood City, according to a news report at the Redwood City-Woodside Patch.

A 23-year-old Vallejo woman was the first to respond to the ad; she arrived at the Sequoia Hospital after being told by the “agent” when responding to the ad that she would need a medical screening. She showed up in the hospital parking garage at about 1 p.m., the other woman, an 18-year-old Santa Cruz woman, about 3 p.m. Both women were met by a man (allegedly Chow) who claimed to be a doctor, then led them to a utility room in the hospital where he told each woman at the two separate times he would conduct an exam. He alleged the exam had to be performed in the utility room because the hospital was busy.

The news article reports the first woman to arrive was sexually assaulted. When the second woman arrived at 3 p.m. and was taken to the utility room, she became suspicious and called police. After investigating, authorities located the Vallejo woman and determined both women were victim’s of the same man. Chow was arrested at his home in Modesto after being identified by police. He works at the hospital as a contract security supervisor.

September 30, 2015

Lubbock Man Indicted in Aggravated Sexual Assault Case

by Scott Grabel

On Tuesday, September 29, a Lubbock, TX man was indicted in an aggravated assault case involving a woman he allegedly abducted on September 9. Tony Price, 59, is accused of sexually assaulting the 59-year-old woman on three occasions in his apartment. He is charged with three counts of first-degree felony aggravated sexual assault, according to news reports.

Price allegedly struck the woman and forced her to perform sexual acts. The next day, the victim convinced Price to take her to pay her electric bill at the Lubbock Power & Light office. While inside the office, the woman got the attention of an off-duty police officer and let him know she needed help. Price fled the scene, and was arrested six days later on September 15. He remains in the Lubbock County Detention Center on a bond of $25,000.

The victim claims that Price kept her against her will, then threatened, beat, and raped her.

September 23, 2015

New Jersey Neurologist Facing Sexual Assault Charges in Connection with Female Patient

by Scott Grabel

On Tuesday, September 22 it was announced that 61-year-old Dr. Farooq Rehman, a neurologist in Old Bridge, NJ, had been charged with the alleged sexual assault of a female patient. Rehman resides in Colts Neck.

According to news reports at CBS and My Central Jersey, Rehman is accused of sexually assaulting a patient in his office during examinations by improperly touching the victim, a 37-year-old woman whose name was not released. The woman alleges this activity occurred during visits to the doctor’s office between August 26 and September 9 of this year, according to the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s office.

Investigators with the Old Bridge Police Dept. began investigating the case after the alleged victim contact police. Rehman has been charged with two counts of criminal sexual contact, and was held on a $100,000 bail at the Middlesex County Adult Corrections Center at last report.

September 9, 2015

Van Buren High School Volleyball Coach Charged with First-Degree Sexual Assault of Minor Student

by Scott Grabel

On August 6 of this year, a minor male student who attended a Van Buren, Arkansas high school reported to police that he had been having a sexual relationship with 25-year-old Katherine Nicole Eskridge, a volleyball and physical education coach with the Van Buren School District. The relationship began in March, according to news reports at 5 News and Arkansas Online.

Eskridge reportedly turned herself in to police on September 2 on a warrant for first-degree sexual assault. The alleged victim reported that he and Eskridge had engaged in sex “at least 100 times,” and that they would have sexual relations at the coach’s Fort Smith home, as well as other areas including his own parents’ home and behind a mini-storage unit. The student told police that he was living with Eskridge in her home, and that the relationship had continued from March until early August. Eskridge resigned her position with the school district on August 15.

The minor student told investigators that he and Eskridge became friends after playing gaming app Trivia Crack. He decided to report the relationship after Eskridge stole some of his belongings, saying he had begun to feel guilty. He also reported the former coach left him at a McDonald’s the two had stopped at while enroute to Dallas, and that she had driven off with his wallet and other belongings after he was joking around about revealing their relationship.

August 27, 2015

Haskell Police Officer Faces Charges of Sexual Assault, Child Pornography

by Scott Grabel

In Saline County, AR, the small community of Haskell is divided in their reactions to the arrest of 32-year-old Kyle Vaughan, who was arrested recently and fired from his job as a Haskell police officer, charged with sexual assault involving a juvenile, and child pornography.

According to news reports, the Haskell Police Dept. is located directly across the street from the school, and officers direct school traffic. Some parents and grandparents are shocked at the fact that a potential child predator could have been watching over their children, while those who know Vaughn have a difficult time believing the accusations are true, calling him “a family man, not a pedophile.”

Arkansas State Police took Vaughn into custody on the afternoon of Monday, August 17. At the time of news reports, he was being held in the Saline County Jail on charges of computer child pornography, failure to report, distribution or possession of material depicting explicit images, and second-degree sexual assault on a juvenile. Authorities began investigating Vaughn in May of this year. He has been terminated from the Haskell Police Dept.

August 19, 2015

Man Sought for Staten Island Sexual Assault Arrested in New Jersey

by Scott Grabel

Recently, a 32-year-old man who allegedly raped a 7-year-old girl on Staten Island was apprehended and arrested by police in New Jersey. The girl was reportedly raped sometime prior to 2:45 a.m. on August 6 at her home.

According to news reports, Daniel Nieto entered the home where the young girl lived through an unlocked door, then sexually assaulted the victim. Ironically, Nieto had been arrested for criminal trespass for hanging out in a vacant home just a short time following the sexual assault, although police were not aware the rape had occurred. After being charged with criminal trespass, Nieto was released. It would take police 12 days to find Nieto and arrest him in connection with the rape.

Ultimately, police caught Nieto in East Brunswick, NJ and took him into custody on Tuesday, August 18. At last news reports, charges against him were pending as the suspect is being extradited to Staten Island to face charges.

July 15, 2015

Illegal Immigrant from Mexico Charged with Sexual Assault in Connection with Missing 13-year-old from Florida

by Scott Grabel

Last week, 23-year-old Aurelio Hernandez-Gomez was jailed on charges of criminal sexual conduct in connection with a 13-year-old girl who had been missing out of Florida. On Friday, July 10, Hernandez-Gomez was arraigned on charges of third-degree criminal sexual conduct; he also has felony arrest warrants out of Florida for interference with child custody and kidnapping.

The Van Buren County Sheriff’s Dept. deputies investigated a residence in Hartford Township and being contacted by Polk County authorities seeking their assistance in the case of the missing girl. Authorities believed she was with Hernandez-Gomez, which turned out to be the case. When deputies searched the residence along with the Pokagon Tribal and Cover Township police departments, the girl and suspect were found hiding. After investigating further, deputies determined that the girl had been sexually assaulted by the suspect.
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July 1, 2015

Wilhoit Man Sentenced to 14 Years in Prison Following Conviction for Sexual Assault of Minor

by Scott Grabel

In August of 2013, Thomas F. Bolton of Wilhoit, AZ allegedly raped a 16-year-old girl at his home. Bolton was convicted of sexually assaulting and kidnapping the underage victim, and was sentenced on June 30 to 14 years in prison. He was also sentenced to 10 years on the kidnapping charges.

The victim in the case told authorities that while at his home, Wilhoit forcibly removed her clothes and held her down to rape her. Wilhoit allegedly stopped assaulting the girl when her boyfriend showed up at the home. He told a deputy that Bolton has his girlfriend pinned to a bed, and that he heard her saying “no.” Bolton denied having sexual contact with the girl, but was charged with harassment after driving to a business in Wilhoit in September of last year where he allegedly blocked a vehicle containing the victim and a friend in a parking lot.

According to a news report at CBS 5 in Arizona, Bolton’s sentences will run concurrently, and he will service the full 14-year sentence for sexual assault.

May 28, 2015

Saginaw Man Pleads No Contest to Sexual Assault, Receives Sentence of Seven-plus Years in Prison

by Scott Grabel

In November of last year, 26-year-old Adam J. Walker pleaded no contest to three counts of third-degree criminal sexual conduct against someone age 13 through 15, according to a news article at Mlive.com. Walker was initially charged with three counts of first-degree CSC during the commission of a felony; he was also charged with two other felonies related to injuries his grandmother suffered when he attempted to steal her vehicle. Those charges were also dropped by prosecutors in exchange for the plea.

As Walker sat in jail following the incident in which his grandmother’s foot was broken as he stole his grandparents’ vehicle, prosecutors charged Walker with three counts of first-degree CSC during the commission of a felony, one count of assault with intent to commit sexual penetration, and one count of using a computer to commit a crime. The warrant alleged that the victim was 13 years old, and that Walker delivered a controlled substance although news reports do not reveal what the drug was.

Walker claimed at his May 2014 arraignment hearing that he did not know anyone with the last name listed on the warrant, which is the name used to identify the alleged victim. He also stressed at his arraignment the fact that he was married.