Alamo man charged with sexual assault
LOS ANGELES
An Alamo, New Mexico, man is facing aggravated sexual assault charges after reportedly raping a woman he knew.
Thomas Abeyta, 37, was arrested by federal authorities on Tuesday four days after medical authorities at the Socorro General Hospital admitted a woman who showed signs of being beaten and raped.
The woman told hospital personnel that she had been sexually assaulted throughout the night. She named Abeyta as the one who assaulted her.
FBI agents reported that when she was interviewed, the woman appeared to be in great pain and had bruises on her face and right arm. She told agents that she had been abused by Abeyta in the past as well.
She said she arrived at Abeyta’s home Friday night and found him drinking alcoholic beverages. She said he demanded that she drink with him and when she refused, he threatened to hurt her.
She said she complied and as they were lying in the bed, he stuck a needle in her and injected her with something. She told FBI agents that Abeyta was known to abuse meth and heroin.
She said she told him to stop but he refused, pushing her face into a pillow on the bed, making it hard for her to breathe. She said she lost consciousness and when she awoke, he was on top of her raping her.
Medical officials at the hospital conducted a rape exam and reported finding bruises consistent with someone who has been sexually assaulted.
The victim’s son, who was in the house that night, said he saw his mother crawling out of the bedroom and used a pipe to threaten Abeyta to leave her alone.
That evening, FBI agents went to Abeyta’s house to get his account of what happened that night.
According to his arrest warrant, he became “belligerent and wanted to know why the FBI had involved itself in such a small thing.”
All he did, said Abeyta, was “slap her around a little bit,” according to the warrant.
On Tuesday, he was interviewed again, and admitted that he had had sex with her Friday night but continued to say all he did was “slap her around.”
Highway 264,
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