Minneapolis Man Convicted Of Raping 'Physically Helpless' Woman

MINNEAPOLIS — A Minneapolis man was sentenced Monday after he was convicited by a jury on two counts of criminal sexual conduct, Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman announced.

Mainza Malambo, 27, raped a woman who was physically helpless, according to prosecutors.

His conviction followed a week-long trial, during which state prosecuors argued that Malambo assaulted the woman twice in the early morning hours of Sept. 25, 2021.

Malambo's conviction is one of the first cases successfully prosecuted under the new criminal sexual conduct laws passed by the Minnesota Legislature in 2021, according to Freeman.

In 2021, lawmakers changed state law in a way that prevents defendants from using a pre-existing relationship, or intoxication, as a legal defense in sexual assault cases.

"I want to thank our prosecution team for their hard work in obtaining this guilty verdict," Freeman said in a statement.

"Cases like this are the reason we fought so hard for changes to our criminal sexual conduct laws at the legislature. We will continue to fight to protect victims of sexual assault."

According to Freeman's office, during Malambo's sentencing, the victim told the court that "Being a victim of sexual assault has affected my entire life. However, the fact that we are here today shows me that Justice has been served." She added that "I feel protected."

On Sept. 25, 2021, the woman was attending a private party that Malambo was also at. The two were friends and had previously been in a romantic relationship that ended a year earlier, according to the criminal complaint.

After the party, the woman went with Malambo to his apartment, where she planned to take an Uber home from, authorities said.

However, the woman fell asleep at the apartment "due to intoxication and fatigue," the criminal complaint states.

The woman woke up twice to Malambo sexually assaulting her, authorities said.

During the second time, she told him to stop and said, "I don't want this," according to the criminal complaint.

Malambo then told her to stop fighting and said he was stronger than her, according to investigators. He held the woman's arms down and continued to assault her, prosecutors said.