ST. GEORGE — A Hurricane man accused of sexually assaulting a woman in a remote area of Washington County last spring was booked into jail Wednesday facing first-degree felony rape – the second case involving sexual assault charges filed against the suspect since January.
The suspect, 28-year-old Raymond Kapongo, has been charged with first-degree felony rape in connection with an incident reported to the LaVerkin Police Department that took place in March of last year.
LaVerkin Police Detective Steve Johnson told St. George News that on Jan. 27, they received a call reporting that a woman had been sexually assaulted by the suspect nearly a year ago.
On the evening in question, the reporting party told officers she had met the suspect, who was a friend she had not seen for several years, and the two got together to get reacquainted, according to charging documents filed with the courts.
During the incident, the complainant agreed to go on a drive with the suspect, who she said “took the back roads” to an area near Sand Hollow State Park. When the two were outside of the vehicle talking, she stated she started feeling uneasy and told the suspect she needed to get home.
From there, she said the suspect continued making advances and appeared to become more aggressive, which she described as the suspect becoming “feral.” Despite her telling the suspect “no” more than 20 times, the report states, the complainant said that Kapongo sexually assaulted her.
During the investigation, the reporting party told officers the suspect denied the accusations and “finally” took her home.
With Kapongo already in custody in Washington County on an unrelated case, Johnson said the suspect was booked on the new charge and the case was submitted to the Washington County Attorney’s Office for review. The following day, he was formally charged with first-degree felony rape.
St. George News reached out to Johnson to inquire about the 11-month delay that took place between the time the incident happened to when it was reported. He said that in many cases, particularly when they involve a sexual assault, the level of trauma to the victim can be so severe it can take time before they are ready to report the crime. It wasn’t until days after the news story involving the suspect’s arrest in January, he said, that the call was made to the LaVerkin Police Department.
On Jan. 16, Kapongo was arrested on an unrelated case involving the alleged sexual assault of a co-worker that was reported in August of last year.
In that case, the reporting party told Johnson that she was previously employed by Kapongo, who was identified as the owner of the business. It was while cleaning one of those properties that the alleged sexual assault took place.
The case was filed on Nov. 22, 2022., and the suspect was charged with three first-degree felonies — one count each of rape, sodomy and object rape, according to the affidavit filed with the courts. Kapongo was arrested on the charges on Jan. 16, and has remained in custody. That case is still pending in the courts.
Detectives also discovered another unrelated case filed in 2017 that resulted in a misdemeanor conviction for sexual battery involving a coworker, according to court records.
In that case, investigators received an anonymous letter alleging that Kapongo was sexually involved with an underaged co-worker.
Court records revealed that at the time, the defendant was employed at a local restaurant as a shift leader when he admittedly had a sexual relationship with one of his underaged subordinates. The youth was under the age of 15, police discovered during the investigation.
The defendant pleaded guilty to the sexual battery charge three years later and the jail sentence was suspended. Instead, the defendant was placed on 18 months probation and ordered to pay a fine. On the most recent case, Kapongo made an initial appearance in court on Thursday and a preliminary hearing is scheduled to take place in 5th District Court March 3.
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.
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