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News on US Illegal Immigration 6 men accused of raping woman Police: Unusual to charge so many, have so much evidence KYTJA WEIR Staff Writer Charlotte Observer October 12, 2004 Six men were in custody Monday, charged with gang raping a 37-year-old wo man visiting a Huntersville home over the weekend. But Huntersville police are still looking for a seventh man. The woman, whom police did not identify, visited a trailer home in the 11 000 block of Cimmaron Road on the southwestern edge of Huntersville arou nd 9:30 pm Saturday night, said Huntersville police Lt. She was a friend of one of the men who lived there, off McCoy Road, Richa rdson said. The friend and six other men held the woman at the home for at least six hours and repeatedly raped her, Richardson said. The next morning she called police around 11:30 am and went to Lake Nor man Regional Medical Center to be treated for physical injuries. Such rapes with multiple attackers are nearly unheard of in the town of a bout 32,300 people, Richardson said. Since joining the department six ye ars ago, the lieutenant said, he hasn't seen a rape case with so many su spects -- or so much evidence. But rape has been on the rise in Mecklenburg County this year. In the fir st half of 2004, the number of rapes reported to Charlotte-Mecklenburg p olice increased 11 percent from the same period in 2003. It's unclear, t hough, how many of the 156 reported rapes were gang rapes, a term for ra pes with more than one suspect. "I believe people should be able to go where they want to go and be safe." Huntersville police visited the home Sunday afternoon to collect evidence and found the men were in the country illegally. Investigators called immigration officia ls who detained the men while Huntersville police continued their invest igation. The woman identified five of the men, Richardson said, and the sixth offe red a statement to police. They are still trying to identify and locate a seventh man who raped her, police said. On Monday afternoon, police charged each of the six men with first degree forcible rape, first degree sexual offense and first degree kidnapping, Richardson said. Also charged are Eladio Castillo Castillo, 28, who lives in Corne lius; and Alejandro Morales Suarez, 25, who lives elsewhere in Huntersvi lle, police said.
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