Man Accused Of Murdering South Bay Woman, Raping Others

REDONDO BEACH, CA – A trial began Monday for a Gardena man accused of killing a woman in a bondage-style sexual encounter in 2015 (Warning: the details of the case are violent and graphic in nature). Kellie Marie Nolan, a 27-year-old from Torrance, was found unresponsive in a Gardena motel room on Dec. 12, 2015, wrapped in cellophane and duct tape from her abdomen to her hair, including her mouth and nose, police said.

Authorities later said she died of asphyxiation, and her death was ruled a homicide. The Daily Breeze reported that Ross is charged with one count each of murder, sodomy of an unconscious victim and forcible sodomy; seven counts each of rape of an unconscious person and forcible rape; six counts of sexual penetration by a foreign object; and two counts of injuring a spouse or girlfriend.

Police discovered a camera and cellphone had recorded the events, and later discovered more videos on Ross' hard drives that allegedly show him sexually assaulting unconscious women. According to prosecutors, the videos show Ross wrapping the women up in cellophane and duct tape, and in some instances – hanging them from a pull-up bar in a doorway and having sex with them while they were unconscious, according to the Daily Breeze. Multiple women testified that they didn't know what Ross had done to them until after they were shown the video, according to the newspaper.

Prosecutors said that the videos show an abuse of trust. The defense said it was an accident, and a result of a risky lifestyle choice, the newspaper reported.

Read more about the trial at The Daily Breeze

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