Police fear more victims linked to ride-share driver John Pastor-Mendoza after sexual assault arrest
Police fear there are more victims after the arrest of an accused serial rapist. The suspect is a ride-share driver who now faces at least 41 felony counts.
The first assault was in 2018 and the most recent was this past July. The cases involve women who were picked up at nightclubs and bars across Denver.
The most recent incidents occurred outside of Tracks nightclub. The club aided in the investigation by identifying the suspect as a regular. From there, police identified John Pastor-Mendoza as the perpetrator through a DNA match. Now they're looking for more women who may have called for a ride and been victimized.
Pastor-Mendoza, 41, is accused of kidnapping and sexually assaulting ten women between September 2018 and July of 2022.
The DA's office says Pastor-Mendoza responded as the driver when women requested a ride on a ride-share app. Prosecutors believe he then sexually assaulted them in his car or at his home. While Pastor-Mendoza is a registered ride-share driver, it's not clear whether he was the assigned driver for these rides. Most of the incidents took place outside downtown Denver bars and the victims reported being intoxicated. Denver police believe there may be more victims out there.
"That's what offenders and perpetrators do is take advantage of vulnerable people," says Jacquie Aamodt with Denver sexual assault resource Blue Bench. She says many rape victims don't come forward out of shame and fear of not being believed.
"They may feel that they are somehow responsible, which they are absolutely not responsible. They may feel that somehow they contributed to this, which is absolutely not the truth," says Aamodt.
While Aamodt says it's a victim's choice to come forward, she says they may do so to be heard and get justice. Denver Police hope more of pastor-Mendoza's victims will choose to do so. If you believe you may be a victim, contact police at 720-913-2000.
Pastor-Mendoza is charged with 41 felony counts including sexual assault, kidnapping, and robbery. He'll appear in court on Nov. 4.