St. George man accused of assaulting teen during drive home is charged with rape, forcible sodomy

Stock image | St. George News

ST. GEORGE — A man is in jail facing rape and sodomy charges following an investigation into a report alleging that the suspect’s offer to take a teenage girl home took a detour that ended in sexual assault.

The investigation began in February when St. George Police detectives were called in to follow up on a report of a possible sexual assault after a teenage girl disclosed to her father that she had been raped by a family member of one of her friends. The suspect is identified as 24-year-old Juan Grijalva-Chavez of St. George.

During a forensic interview held at the Children’s Justice Center, the teen said that she and a cousin were over at a friend’s house on Feb. 14. When the two girls were ready to leave, she said Grijalva-Chavez offered to take the two girls home.

According to the probable cause statement filed in support of the arrest, the suspect dropped the cousin off first, but instead of taking the second teen home, he drove to a park near 900 South and stopped the car, telling the girl to get in the backseat of the vehicle.

According to the statement, she complied, and the suspect then partially undressed the girl and raped and sodomized her multiple times, all the while the girl said she was crying and asking the man to stop.

The Washington County Children’s Justice Center, St. George, Utah, Sept. 3, 2019 | File photo by Mori Kessler, St. George New

When the alleged assault was over, the report states that the suspect pushed the girl away from him and would not allow her to get out of the vehicle. Shortly thereafter, he allegedly told the teen to get in the front seat, adding that she needn’t worry about getting pregnant because he was unable to have children.

The girl told officers she disclosed the incident to a couple of friends, several of whom were interviewed by detectives. They reportedly provided a similar account of the incident as the one provided by the teen during the forensic interview days earlier.

The teen’s account was further corroborated by the girl’s cousin, who also described the suspect’s behavior in a manner that was consistent to what officers had learned from multiple interviews conducted over the course of several days.

Shortly after the reported incident, the teen was examined at the hospital, and the medical report later submitted to detectives revealed evidence consistent with a sexual assault, in addition to biological material that was collected and sent to the state crime lab for analysis.

Grijalva-Chavez agreed to go to the police station for an interview, during which he told officers he did in fact offer the girls a ride home “to be nice,” but he denied ever taking the teen to the park, nor did they take “any detours” during the drive to her house. He went on to say he dropped the girls off at their respective residences, adding he never had any sexual contact with either of the teens.

The suspect also consented to a mouth swab that was taken and sent to one of the state’s crime labs for analysis.

After several months, the analysis was completed and revealed revealed a mixture of DNA that originated from two individuals – one of which was a match to Grijalva-Chavez, according to the report.

When investigators reached out to the suspect for a follow-up interview, Grijalva-Chavez declined and was placed under arrest and transported to Purgatory Correctional Facility.

On Friday, the suspect was formally charged with three first-degree felonies – two counts of forcible sodomy and one count of rape. Grijalva-Chavez is being held without bail.

Ed. Note: A new Utah law generally prohibits the release of arrest booking photos until after a conviction is obtained. 

This report is based on statements from court records, police or other responders and may not contain the full scope of findings. Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2021, all rights reserved.

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