The attempted rape of a minor lands 2 men before the courts

Two men from the Corozal district have been hit with a slew of charges after an attempted rape on a minor. The sixteen year old girl from Xaibe Village told Police that on October tenth she was walking home on the San Roque Road at around three in the afternoon. She observed when three men on bicycles riding in the opposite direction passed her, and one of the men then turned back. The minor says that the man rode past until he was in front of her and then got off his bicycle. She looked back and noticed that the other two men were right behind her. One of them then grabbed her around the neck while another threw her to the ground. The minor told Police that one of the men tried to take off her pants. Because she was screaming and fighting, one of her assailants then held a knife to her chest and told her to shut up. Things would likely have gotten much worse, but at that point the minor’s father arrived on the scene. He was threatened with the knife by one of the men, after which all three made their escape. Corozal Police acted quickly, and immediately detained three men. Two of them, Valencio Rash and Emilio Rodriquez, were subsequently arrested and charged with attempted rape, aggravated assault, robbery and harm. The Police objected to bail on the grounds that sexual offences are becoming much more common in the district, but the Magistrate granted both men bail. Valencio Rash is no stranger to Police. He was arrested in 2008 on charges of murder and conspiracy to commit murder. He then escaped in December 2008 but was recaptured. He was acquitted of the charges in July 2012.