Crime & Safety
Arcadia Man Who Kidnapped and Brutally Raped Victim Sentenced to Prison
He kidnapped his victim, dragged her into his vehicle and took her home where he assaulted her for hours until police arrived.
ARCADIA, CA — An Arcadia-area man was sentenced Wednesday to eight years in prison for raping one woman and assaulting another woman within a 4 1/2- month period.
Philippe Mengi Brian Lutete, 31, pleaded no contest Dec. 12 to one count of forcible rape stemming from an April 8, 2015, attack, along with one count of assault with intent to commit a felony involving a separate victim on Nov. 26, 2014.
Lutete was free on bond in a case arising from the earlier crime when he was arrested for the 2015 rape. Both of the attacks occurred at his house in unincorporated Arcadia.
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The victim in the November 2014 attack was able to escape from a second- story window and call 911, and the other victim managed to alert a neighbor who called sheriff's deputies, Deputy District Attorney Rena Durrant said.
Sheriff's deputies arrested Lutete on April 8, 2015, after a manhunt in the area.
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Along with the eight-year prison term, Lutete was ordered to serve an additional year in prison on an unrelated case.
City News Service, LA County Sheriff Photo