DfDeportation's Blog

Woman Allegedly Held Hostage at Abandoned Building for 16 Days Last Edited: Saturday, 03 May 2008, 10:21 PM PDT Created: Saturday, 03 May 2008, 5:10 PM PDT A 20-year-old Maywood woman allegedly kidnapped by her ex-boyfriend and beaten and raped over a two-week period was recovering Saturday. The woman was allegedly locked in a 12-by-12-foot room at an abandoned building on East Slauson Avenue near Mettler Avenue. SideBar
Related Items Videos or just enabling jstl so that we can just write ${bean.property} and jsp takes care of the new lines. -->
Los Angeles -- A 20-year-old Maywood woman allegedly kidnapped by her ex-boyfriend and beaten and raped over a two-week period was recovering Saturday and the man was in custody, police said.

The woman was reported missing April 16 by a friend who told police the woman's ex-boyfriend, 35-year-old Mario Menas, also known as Porfirio Izaguirre, might have something to do with it.

Menas allegedly kidnapped the woman from her Maywood home and locked her in a 12-by-12-foot room at an abandoned building on East Slauson Avenue near Mettler Avenue, said Maywood-Cudahy police Chief Frank Hauptmann.

He allegedly beat and sexually assaulted her over a two-week period and did not give her any food, police said.

Menas took the woman's cell phone, but at some point she got it back and called a friend, who alerted authorities.

Working with the FBI, police tracked the cell phone signal to the building, which they were about to enter when Menas showed up and was arrested, Hauptmann said.

The woman was found inside.

"The victim was found in a traumatic state due to the ordeal of being held captive for 16 days," he said. "She was relieved to see that the police were successful in locating her in such a short period of time."

"She was under the threat that had she not done anything ... he wanted, if she reported anything, if she were to try to make any sort of an escape that certain members of her family, her extended family and friends would be killed," Hauptmann said.

The woman was taken to a hospital, where doctors determined "it was apparent that she had been deprived of food and was sexually assaulted numerous times," he said.

Menas was in jail on suspicion of kidnapping, rape and assault. He is to be arraigned early next week.