California community stunned by brutal attack
Many may have seen rape, but did nothing
RICHMOND, Calif. – The gang rape and beating of a 15-year-old girl on school grounds after her homecoming dance was horrific enough. But even more shocking, police say, was that up to two dozen people watched and did nothing to stop it.
The attack over the weekend rattled this crime-ridden city of 120,000 in the San Francisco Bay Area, where one police official called it one of the most heinous crimes he has ever seen. Some students have already left the school in response to the attack.
“It’s not safe there at all,” said 16-year-old Jennie Steinberg, whose mother let her transfer out of the school Tuesday. “I’m not going back.”
The victim, a sophomore, had left the dance and was drinking alcohol in a school courtyard with a group when she was attacked, police said.
Two suspects were in custody Monday, but police said as many as seven ranging in age from 15 to mid-20s attacked the girl for more than two hours at a dimly lit area near benches Saturday night. As many as two dozen people saw the rape without notifying police.
Officers found the girl semiconscious and naked from the waist down near a picnic table. She remains hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries.
“This was a barbaric act. I still cannot get my head around the fact that numerous people either watched, walked away or participated in her assault,” Lt. Mark Gagan said Tuesday. “It’s one of the most disturbing crimes in my 15 years as a police officer.”
Gagan would not comment on rumors that observers took video of the attack on cell phones and may have posted it online.
Manuel Ortega, a 19-year-old former student, was arrested after trying to flee the scene. He is being held on $800,000 bail for investigation of rape and robbery. Attempts to reach Ortega at the jail Tuesday were unsuccessful.
A 15-year-old student also was booked late Monday on one count of sexual assault, Gagan said.
Late Tuesday, SWAT teams were preparing to make more arrests as police are also offering a $20,000 reward they hope will bring more people forward with any information.
Even though he said as many as two dozen people were witnesses, Gagan said officials are still trying to determine the exact number of people involved.