Arrest in Teen’s Alleged Rape at Mall

Sheriff’s Department investigators have arrested an unemployed 18-year-old maintenance worker on suspicion of raping a 13-year-old girl last weekend in a remote corridor of the Laguna Hills Mall.

Huber Daniel Cruz of Laguna Hills faces arraignment Tuesday in South Municipal Court on charges of forcible rape and unlawful intercourse with a minor, said Sheriff’s Department Lt. Ron Wilkerson. Cruz was arrested at the mall Thursday afternoon after an investigator interviewing people about the alleged rape spotted him there.

Cruz and the 13-year-old had met at the video arcade Sunday and became friendly, Wilkerson said. The girl left a friend and took a walk with Cruz to an interior corridor of the mall, which is isolated from pedestrian traffic but frequented by security and janitorial staff.

There, they kissed and Cruz began taking off the girl’s clothes, Wilkerson said. She protested, but Cruz refused to stop and ultimately had forced intercourse with her, Wilkerson said.

The girls spent several hours at the mall after the incident, and the victim did not call security. Her father notified the Sheriff’s Department of the incident at about 6 p.m. Wednesday, Wilkerson said.

The investigator had just finished talking with people in the arcade and stepped out into the mall to work on his notes Thursday afternoon when he spotted Cruz, police said.

He was booked into the Orange County Jail in lieu of $50,000 bail.

The mall’s general manager, Jonathan Alpert, said Cruz may have been employed at one time as a maintenance worker for a subcontractor at the mall. But Alpert said the mall never directly employed Cruz.

“We feel badly that it happened on our property but we feel very confident about how we operate our security,” Alpert said. “Every one of our back hallways are patrolled by our security. We have logs that show when they were in and out. . . . The window of opportunity was 10 minutes.”

Wilkerson said investigators believe other girls may have been victimized by Cruz. Anyone with any information is encouraged to call Investigator Steve Hill at (714) 647-7040.