BEMIDJI, Minn. — A man is jailed and police continue to investigate after an 11-year-old girl said she was sexually assaulted by several men at a home in Bemidji in late September.
Bemidji police say 22-year-old Oscar Luna was arrested in connection with the case and charged with first-degree criminal sexual conduct in the alleged assault. Also in the home on the 1800 block of America Court were a dozen other individuals who were located and identified. Of those, 11 were turned over to the custody of the U.S. Border Patrol while their possible involvement in the alleged assault of the child is investigated further.
In an update issued Wednesday, Oct. 4, Bemidji police said one of the females described by the 11-year-old was located and questioned. The woman, an adult, told investigators she did not believe there was a third victim in the home, as described by the young victim. During their search of the alleged crime scene, police did not find the third female, but said they continue to investigate the possibility a third person was victimized.
Police also said the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) processed the home for more than eight hours attempting to locate evidence of a crime. They believe the incident is isolated.
According to a criminal complaint filed in Beltrami County, staff from Sanford Bemidji Emergency Department called police when an 11-year-old girl arrived at the ER with severe injuries consistent with a sexual assault on Sept. 23. According to the complaint, the girl underwent a series of interviews with investigators and staff at the Family Advocacy Center; she described how her "auntie" forced her to get into a car which brought her to a home where several men tied up and raped her. The victim said there were at least two other girls also tied up in the home, one of whom later helped the victim to escape.
The complaint states police were able to identify the home where the alleged rape took place and arrested Luna, whose distinctive facial tattoos and piercings matched a description of one of the men given by the victim.
According to the complaint, Luna denied raping the girl, but admitted to knowing the woman described in the complaint as her "auntie." In addition to the criminal sexual conduct charges, police said Luna also had outstanding warrants tied to DWI offenses, including one in Hennepin County.
The criminal complaint did not provide any information about the other girls allegedly spotted at the scene by the victim, or any of the other men described inside the home.
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