Paramedic Arraigned in Rape, Burglary Case
A 43-year-old paramedic was arraigned Thursday in Lancaster Superior Court on charges including rape and residential burglary.
Henry Benoit pleaded not guilty to 12 charges stemming from an incident involving a 60-year-old woman, said Deputy Dist. Atty. Daniel Damon.
Benoit allegedly raped the woman and burglarized her Lancaster home March 15, Damon said.
“He went to the victim’s house at a late-night hour, and she let him in voluntarily because she knew who he was,” Damon said.
Benoit, a paramedic with the Los Angeles County Fire Department, was arrested March 15 and released on $60,000 bail. Capt. Robert Grafton, a spokesman for the Fire Department, said Benoit was not on duty at the time of the incident, but the department is investigating.
Benoit worked at the station in Lancaster but “has been reassigned to a staff position with no public contact” during the investigation, Grafton said.
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