Arcadia Man Ordered to Stand Trial For Alleged Kidnapping, Rape

An Arcadia man who allegedly kidnapped a woman and raped her over the course of 11 hours while out on bail for an earlier alleged abduction and attempted sexual assault must stand trial on felony charges, a judge ruled Monday.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Villalobos ruled that there was sufficient evidence to try Philippe Mengi Brian Lutete, 29, on seven counts.

Five of the charges stem from an alleged April 8 attack -- two counts of forcible rape and one count each of kidnapping to commit rape, forcible oral copulation and assault with intent to commit rape.

Lutete is also charged with false imprisonment by violence and sexual battery for an alleged late November abduction in which the victim escaped through a second-story window and called 911. The defendant was out on bail on those charges when he allegedly struck again in April.

Lutete, who also faces allegations that he used a deadly weapon and committed great bodily injury during the commission of the November crime, is due back in court for arraignment on Aug. 24.

He has been held since April 8 on $3.25 million bail and, if convicted, could face life in prison.

In the latest crime, Lutete allegedly abducted a 25-year-old woman around 3 a.m. near Longden Avenue and Peck Roads and took her to his home near Longden and 10th Street, where she was repeatedly sexually assaulted.

The victim managed to briefly escape the residence and alert a neighbor before being dragged back inside, according to the Sheriff’s Department. The neighbor called authorities, who heard a woman screaming when they responded to the home around 2 p.m.

When they broke down the door of the home, Lutete escaped through a second-story window, prompting a manhunt in the area, sheriff’s officials said. He was arrested around 9:30 p.m.

Prosecutors allege Lutete tried to rape another woman he met in La Puente and brought back to his home last Nov. 26. In that case, the victim managed to escape and call 911.

--City News Service