Police: 10 Witness Rape, Do Nothing

(AP)  A security video from an apartment hallway shows at least 10 witnesses ignored a woman's cries for help for more than an hour as a man beat and sexually assaulted her, prosecutors in Minnesota said.

The surveillance video clearly showed men and women looking out their apartment doors or starting to walk down the hallway before retreating as the woman was assaulted for nearly 90 minutes, police spokesman Tom Walsh said.

Police said they responded to a call of drunken behavior and found Somali immigrant Rage Ibrahim, 25, and a woman lying unconscious in the hallway early Tuesday. The woman's clothing had been pulled up and she had fresh scratches on her face and blood on her thigh, according to the criminal complaint.

Ibrahim says he is innocent and that the incident was a misunderstanding, according to Omar Jamal, the executive director of the Somali Justice Advocacy Center, who spoke on Ibrahim's behalf.

Ibrahim was charged with several counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, prosecutors said.

Walsh said police were shocked by the behavior of the bystanders.

"(The video) shows one person looking out of her door probably three times," Walsh said. "It shows another person walking up, observing what's going on, then turning and putting up the hood of his sweatshirt."

At one point, the 26-year-old woman knocked on a door, yelling for the occupants to call police. A man inside that apartment told police he did not open the door or look out, but said he did call police — although they have no record of his call, according to court documents.

Minnesota law makes it a petty misdemeanor to not give reasonable help to a person in danger of "grave physical harm."

Walsh said it is unlikely police would pursue charges against witnesses in this case because authorities would have to show that witnesses knew the woman was in extreme danger.

Jamal said Ibrahim went into the hallway after the woman because he thought she was too drunk to drive. They struggled over car keys, and "he is saying there was a huge misunderstanding," Jamal said, adding that the police report does not show "the truth of what happened that night."

"He did not rape her," Jamal said.

[nikebreez]

This is so tragic, it wouldnt matter if he was gonna kill her or was raping her, as human beings, when you hear someone screaming for help, for God''s Sake do something, if you are afraid, then CALL THE *** COPS, let them handle it......whats wrong with people today??? I mean i raised my kids with compassion and a heart, and i know if they had been there they would call the cops, my 6 year old grandaughter would have called them! you people are sick, an you all should be charged with neglect or whatever they can put on you!....i would be ashamed of myself if i were you........susan

[ov442]

Minnesota law makes it a petty misdemeanor to not give reasonable help to a person in danger of "grave physical harm."

These people had no idea if this woman was going to die, or was being beaten to death, or being attacked or raped or not, But it was their job as humans to give a person pleading for help the benefit of the doubt first, and ask questions later.
The police should have been called after the first person heard her cries for help.

I want those police to charge everyone that was on camera that failed to help.
What good is having the law, if they dont enforce it.

[cfin5]

I just can''t believe those witnesses!!! The bunch of worthless wusses!!! I know for a FACT that had I been there that animal would not have got past "1st. base" in his efforts. I been working hard for a good while. I''m not weak in strength or will, yet I have never cracked my throttle on anybody my whole life and hope I never do. One thing that I know for sure,.....My heart has a BIG 4 BARREL CARBURETOR and there aint nothing wrong with it......

[keithle1]

A good part of the world is very poor, screwed up & awful. People want to leave their country & move to the USA. We will always have lots of foreigners here. We''re not going to wake up one day & find that Mexico, Central America & Africa
have great economies & the countries are doing well. Not in my lifetime anyway.

[klingon69]

Klingon69,
I don''''t have to site sources, its common sense.
Posted by mitch0927 at 05:26 PM : Aug 24, 2007
So, what you are saying is that you have no credibility, the pertentile you quoted was pulled from your arse and that you know nothing about this subject except what left-leaning liberals have said. Oh, the bad old gun. It kills people you know...get a life!

[gopack443]

I don''t know what is worse, Living in a society that needs laws to make people render aid to a person in risk of "grave physical harm" or having cops that chose not to enforce them! "because authorities would have to show that witnesses knew the woman was in extreme danger" Arrest them all and let them spend there life savings trying to prove themselves innocent!

[colonieny]

What about last year''s RAPE of an 11 year old girl, by 10 Black Football Players in Fresno Califnornia, July 2006 ? We heard about if, briefly. But no one has been charged and the media, including CBS has let the story get buried. Because it is not PC, or fit the story line they line, but DUKE did.
So, I predict, the outrage of this story is also just a flash, and will soon be gone, as not fitting a the PC line we get all the time, all the time, all the time.. (1984 ?)

[toldyouso21]

Haven''''''''t you ever seen Jungle Fever, the Spike Lee joint? The cops could have gone in there and broke up a ''''''''cultural'''''''' ritual and been sued. Then where would we be?????
Posted by infidel_us at 11:37 AM : Aug 24, 2007


Yep... and part of the ''mating ritual was to knock on doors and scream for someone to call the police? You try too hard infidel. Perversions--they are not just for your views on the Iraq war anymore.

[toldyouso21]

How were we supposed to know it was rape? What if it was a ''''cultural'''' thing......like genital mutilation or dog fighting? Haven''''t you ever seen Jungle Fever, the Spike Lee joint? The cops could have gone in there and broke up a ''''cultural'''' ritual and been sued. Then where would we be?????
Posted by infidel_us at 11:37 AM : Aug 24, 2007


We''d be upholding our laws. Because last I heard, *** in public is illegal, even if both want it and people are not held to the laws of their former land when they move here, they are held to ours, if it is a cultural thing, then they better re-learn the rules of assimilation and adjust accordingly. After all, it is just one step from practicing one''s "culture" on a like member to practicing it on anyone in the society at large. How would you like a relative to experience Ibrahim and his culture?

[toldyouso21]

Jamal said Ibrahim went into the hallway after the woman because he thought she was too drunk to drive. They struggled over car keys, and "he is saying there was a huge misunderstanding," Jamal said, adding that the police report does not show "the truth of what happened that night."

"He did not rape her," Jamal said.



the camera obviously showed the man having *** with her, and that she did not want it. Her face showed scratches and damage and there was blood on her thigh. Maybe in Somalia it is necessary for penile penetration to take place in public to retreive car keys, but in America it is called rape. Somebody should let Jamal and his client--Ibrahim know this and punish them accordingly.