A 22-year-old Bend man was arrested at his workplace for allegedly raping an 18-year-old woman after meeting her on a dating app. Bend Police interviewed the victim on Feb. 28th. An investigation determined that the young woman began communicating with the suspect on Tinder in mid-February, and then continued communicating with him via Snapchat.
They arranged to meet on Feb. 21 at his home. The suspect allegedly gave the 18-year-old alcohol. She reported that initially, the pair engaged in consensual sex, but when the sex became painful, she said no and told him that it hurt. He did not stop. As the 18-year-old tried to leave after this incident, the suspect again forced sexual contact and did not stop when she said no, then choked her and attempted to initiate a third sexual encounter.
On Wednesday, March 8, the suspect was arrested at his workplace in Bend and booked into the Deschutes County Jail on charges of first-degree rape, first-degree sodomy and strangulation.
Through their investigation, Bend Police detectives learned that he had previously been accused of similar incidents in the Eugene area and was the subject of four reports alleging sexual assault filed with Eugene Police Department in 2017, as well as a fifth in 2021. He was never charged with a crime in relation to those reports. The circumstances alleged in those reports are similar to the details Bend Police have learned in this investigation.
Bend Police are looking to speak to anyone who may have connected with the suspect on Tinder, Snapchat or other online dating apps. Anyone with additional information is asked to contact nonemergency dispatch at 541-693-6911 and reference case #2023-00011636.
