Young mother of two, lured to house, sexually assaulted

A young mother of two, who alleges that she was sexually assaulted by a man who used Facebook to lure her to his home, is warning persons to be careful when accepting friend requests on social networking sites.{{more}}

The woman, who will go by the name Sasha to protect her identity, said that the experience has left her so traumatized, that she has had difficulty sleeping at night, since the incident occurred last week.

In an interview with SEARCHLIGHT on Wednesday, Sasha said the ordeal began when she accepted a friend request on the popular social networking site from someone she believed to be a woman.

The woman, in her early twenties, said that the individual was very cordial with her, and offered to assist her with getting a job.

“They were talking to me nice and thing and they ask me if I’m working, and I say no, I’m not working, and the person say that a new [business establishment] just open and they ask if I would be interested, and I say yes, because I’m not working at the moment,” Sasha said.

The young mother said the person on Facebook told her that the woman who operated the business establishment was looking for workers.

“They say … the lady looking for workers because they just open, never to know it was nothing like that….” Sasha said.

A meeting was set up for 7:30 a.m. on Friday, September 13, and Sasha was given directions to go to a home on the outskirts of Kingstown.

Sasha said that because of heavy traffic, she was not able to get there for the specified time, but texted ahead to the “woman” to say she was running late, to which the individual replied that they would wait for her.

She said that, as a precaution, before leaving home, she gave her boyfriend the telephone number of the “woman,” as well as the name on the Facebook page.

“….When I reach in town, I felt a little vibe, like something wrong, because my belly start to cut out like something wrong,” Sasha said.

When I reach up there, I calling the phone and is a lady talking to me…. When I talking, she say she going and send the cousin outside to meet me, because she doing she hair.”

She said a young man invited her into the house, and as she sat waiting, the man, described as heavy set, with braided hair, closed and locked the door.

“I get up and asked him, if she say must wait, why you locking up the door….

“And then he start behaving aggressive, and I start to get frighten and I started to cry, and I said don’t do me them things, because I have children and I want to go home and meet me children, and he tell me if I don’t do what he say, he will call some other man to rough me up, and then have sex with me, and do me worse than way he going and do me and dem things.

“And so I had to do what he say.”

Sasha told SEARCHLIGHT that she was ordered to strip, and dance for the man, then perform oral sex on him, for which he said he would pay her $200.

“I tell him I don’t do them things; I tell him I never do them things in my life and he say alright, then he going call the man them, so I had to do what he say, because fright was in me and I wanted to go home and I wasn’t able that he kill me.

“He had a scissors on the table and I ain’t been able that he kill me, so I had to do what he say.”

“And then he was videotaping me and he tell me if I go to the police and if I ain’t come back, that he was going to disgrace me on the Internet.”

Sasha said that as act of survival, she talked to the man in a friendly manner, so that he would not be aggressive with her.

She also alleges that he also showed her other young women on his Blackberry smart phone, some of whom she recognized. She said that he told her that he did the same things to them.

At the end of the alleged ordeal, she said the man told her to come back the following Monday, and he would pay her at the end of the week. She said she told him that she would return.

The woman said after leaving, she went to a relative’s house located outside of Kingstown, but because of shame and anger, she went back to town and visited another relative, and told her what had happened.

That relative, she said, encouraged her to report the matter, and accompanied her to the police.

Sasha said that the police escorted her back to the scene of the alleged crime, where the man was apprehended and arrested, and his cell phone and computer confiscated.

“He telling the officers is not he and is because he ain’t give me the money is why I went to police.”

She also said that the man admitted to disguising his voice as a woman when she spoke to him on the phone.

The young woman alleges that since the man was arrested, a relative of his has been contacting her, pleading with her to drop the case.

“And she know what he does be doing, because she tell me like this, the reason why he does do them things is because he does be home and does be bored, and he want somebody. That means she know about it,” Sasha opined.

“She want me to forget about it… and that she will send him to America …, but I say no, no, no… because what he did to me is really disgraceful.”

SEARCHLIGHT has confirmed that the man, said to be 20 years old, appeared at the Family Court on Monday, where he pleaded not guilty to charges of abduction and sexual assault. He was released on bail.

Sasha is warning others that not everyone who offers to be a friend and to help is genuine.

“Be very careful in accepting friend requests from unknown people. Not ‘cause they are friends with your friends means they are friends with you,” she said.

“All women, young and old, be very careful of men in and out of society, cause they are not to be trusted. And if you are going for a job, let someone go with them or leave some sort of information.”

The young woman also credited television shows like CSI: Miami for teaching her how conduct herself in the face of danger, but said the experience has left her troubled.

“Night time when I lay down and I think about it, it does haunt me,” she said.