3 Charged in Kidnaping of 2 Women : Could Face Life Terms on Counts of Slavery, Rape, Other Felonies

A man and two women accused of raping and torturing two Central American refugees during months of captivity inside a beat-up camper were charged Wednesday with kidnaping, slavery, rape and a host of other felony counts.

If convicted on all charges, they each face two consecutive life terms plus 400 years, said Deputy Dist. Atty. Andrew J. McMullen, who filed the charges.

“I’ve never seen anything quite like this,” McMullen said.

Not Guilty Pleas

The three, who were arrested Monday night, entered not guilty pleas at arraignment in Los Angeles Municipal Court Wednesday afternoon. Each is being held without bail.

A preliminary hearing for the three has been set for Oct. 10.

Originally, the male defendant had identified himself to police as Robert A. Gonzalez, 38. But when Judge Glennette Blackwell asked him if that was his real name, he shook his head “no” and gave his name as Paul Garcia, one of several aliases the victims had said he used. He told the judge he was born in Mexico but had no birth or baptismal certificates to prove his identity.

The women arrested with him were identified as Yolanda Garcia, 28, and Margarita Ruvalcaba, 30. Ruvalcaba is pregnant. It was not known if Yolanda and Paul Garcia are married or related.

Six children who also lived inside the camper remained in protective custody Wednesday. McMullen said the children, who ranged in age from infancy to 9 years, witnessed the beatings. The children apparently were fathered by Garcia, but it is not clear who their mothers are.

All three defendants were charged with 10 criminal counts including kidnaping, robbery, false imprisonment, slavery, assault with a deadly weapon and 43 counts of forcible rape in concert. McMullen said he planned to file additional charges.

Charge Called Unusual

He said the slavery charge is highly unusual but was pressed because the women were forced to work against their will.

The three are accused of kidnaping a 27-year-old immigrant from Guatemala City, Guatemala, on July 12 of last year and holding her prisoner inside their camper for 14 months.

She has told police she was repeatedly raped, beaten, shocked with electrical wires and forced to cook and clean. She escaped Sept. 2.

The Garcias and Ruvalcaba are also accused of kidnaping a 24-year-old woman from San Salvador, El Salvador, on June 5 of last year. She has said she escaped about three months later after enduring an ordeal similar to the Guatemalan woman’s. For about two months, both victims were in the camper together.

Both women were lured to the camper with promises of work and were threatened with death if they tried to escape.

The Salvadoran woman told police she did not step forward earlier because she feared no one would believe her. Only when composite sketches of Garcia were circulated after the Guatemalan woman’s escape did she feel emboldened to contact authorities.

Public Defenders Named

Public defenders were appointed for the three accused, who sat silent and expressionless during their arraignment.

Charles Lindner, the attorney appointed to represent Yolanda Garcia, complained that scant evidence was submitted with the charges.

“There’s not enough information here for anyone to know what was going on,” he said. “Some woman gave an oral report to police, and then they filed charges.”

Times staff writer Franki Ransom contributed to this story.