Police are seeking potential additional victims of Tustin man charged with rape

Orange County District Attorney Press Release

For Immediate Release, Case # 13CF3815: January 16, 2014

LAW ENFORCEMENT SEEKS PUBLIC’S HELP IDENTIFYING POTENTIAL ADDITIONAL VICTIMS OF MAN CHARGED WITH KIDNAPPING AND RAPING WOMAN

SANTA ANA – Law enforcement is seeking the public’s help identifying potential additional victims of a man who is charged with kidnapping and raping a woman. Michael Curtis Hernandez, 37, Tustin, is charged with four felony counts of forcible oral copulation, two felony counts of forcible rape, one felony count each of sodomy by force, sexual penetration by foreign object and force, kidnapping to commit a sex offense, false imprisonment by violence or deceit, and sentencing enhancements and allegations for kidnapping, kidnapping which substantially increased the risk of harm to the victim, and a prior strike conviction of kidnapping from 2003 in Riverside County. If convicted on all counts, Hernandez faces a maximum sentence of over 100 years to life in state prison and mandatory lifetime sex offender registration. He is being held on $1 million bail and is scheduled to be arraigned tomorrow, Jan. 17, 2014, at 10:00 a.m. in Department CJ-1, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana.

At approximately 6:20 p.m. on Dec. 1, 2013, Hernandez is accused of approaching 21-year-old Jane Doe who was walking out of a grocery store in Orange, and asking her for a ride home. Jane Doe agreed to drive Hernandez to his home in Tustin.

After Jane Doe drove Hernandez home, Hernandez is accused of kidnapping the victim by forcing her into his home and repeatedly sexually assaulting her by force. At approximately 3:00 a.m., the victim was able to escape and reported the sexual assault to the Tustin Police Department (TPD), who investigated this case. TPD arrested Hernandez on Dec. 5, 2013.

The investigation is ongoing. Anyone with additional information or who believes they have been a victim is encouraged to contact TPD Detective Natalie Nguyen at (714) 573-3253 or Supervising District Attorney Investigator Paul Carvo at

(714) 347-8794.

If convicted, Hernandez’s mandatory lifetime sex offender registration will bar him from entering County recreational areas and City parks which have passed the Sex Offender Ordinance. Visit www.orangecountyda.com to read the prior press releases on the County’s Sex Offender Ordinance as well as the 14 other cities that have enacted the Child Safety Zone Ordinance.

Senior Deputy District Attorney Jana Hoffmann of the Sexual Assault Unit is prosecuting this case.

###

Tony Rackauckas, District Attorney 401 Civic Center Drive West Santa Ana, CA 92701

Contacts:

Susan Kang Schroeder Chief of Staff Office: 714-347-8408 Cell: 714-292-2718

Farrah Emami Spokesperson Office: 714-347-8405 Cell: 714-323-4486