Arrests were made in California last weekend of three men and seven boys, ranging in age from 15 to 25, for the rapes of a 12-year-old and two 13-year-old girls. The girls, who were reported as runaways, were offered a ride home from the ex-boyfriend of one of the girls. The girls were taken to a motel in Fresno where friends of the driver were throwing a party. The girls were allegedly taken to the bathroom and raped by as many as 16 men over several hours.
Later in the evening a boy snuck out of the party and called the police. When the police arrived they questioned many of the suspects and the girls, but the girls did not officially report the rapes until two days later. Sylvia Ogden of the Victim Witness Service Center said that most gang rape victims do not report the crime. “A lot of rape victims feel dirty. … They’re fearful. Most victims blame themselves. They feel alone,” said Ogden.
Authorities have charged the three men and five juveniles with counts of rape, gang rape, lewd and lascivious acts with children and false imprisonment, according to a Scipps Howard news story. Chief Deputy District Attorney J. Worthington Vogel said the assailants would likely be convicted since the suspects were identified by the victims.
