Russian police nab rape suspects
Moscow police have arrested two men who are believed to be members of an unlicensed taxi cab gang that have been raping and robbing women for fifteen years.
In July this year a woman filed a claim with the police that she was raped and robbed. One of the alleged assailants was detained and later his identity was confirmed by the victim.
Yury Login used to make his living by operating an unlicensed taxi also known as gypsy cab. According to the prosecution, he has been preying on female passengers for almost a decade.
“During the questioning of the attacker's closest circle of acquaintances we determined that he is responsible for multiple rape and robbery crimes that date back to 1999. He and one other suspect are currently under arrest. Only four victims have come forward at this point. We know of at least 20 such episodes and we are working on determining all the victims,” Aleksandr Ulyanov, a senior prosecution investigator, said.
According to the prosecution, the criminals normally followed the same scheme of a crime. The predator would befriend a female passenger and offer her a beverage previously spiked with a sedative. Sometimes he would just use chloroform.
When the victim passed out, he would take her to his garage located in the Moscow region or a deserted place near a lake.
“The attackers used chloroform and electro-shockers on their victims. They took them to a garage and raped and then robbed them. We are not sure how many times they committed this crime. We ask all the women to take a good look at these faces and let us know if they have any information,” Andrey Razhev, a police investigator, appealed.
One of the alleged victims was a 12- year-old girl.
Police discovered several pairs of women's shoes of various sizes and a large selection of jewellery in the suspect's garage and house.
Nevertheless, Yury Login denies some of the charges.
The police and prosecution are considering several similar episodes as the work of a gang, but it still has to be proved.
Meanwhile, three more suspects have been identified.
