Woman kidnapped, raped and left to die by father-daughter duo in California

The victim was held at a home in Palmdale, California for at least a week and was left to die before she was robbed and raped

Rape victim
Picture for representation Pixabay

Las vegas woman who was kidnapped and raped by a father-daughter duo in Palmdale, California was found by military officials after she was left for dead in the desert. As per the police the offenders were identified as Stanley Alfred Lawton, 54 and Shaniya Nicole Poche-Lawton, 22.

Both of them found guilty of dumping the woman off a highway near Edwards Air Force Base in northern Los Angeles, the LA County sheriff's Capt Eduardo Hernandez was quoted as saying by the Associated Press on Friday. The woman was found alive by military personnel on Wednesday, November 6. Calling the incident a "vicious case", Hernandez said, "she's very lucky to be alive."

As per the officials, the survivor in her 40s was kidnapped at gunpoint from northern Las Vegas on October 30 and was held at Lawton's home in Palmdale, California for at least a week. "It's at gunpoint, it's by force, the victim is then transported across state lines, held in a house inside of a room for at least a week," the police department said adding that "At some point, she was sexually assaulted and then left for dead."

While reports suggest that she was brought to an ATM where she was forced to withdraw money from Saturday to Monday, authorities stated that no ransom was demanded for her release, before she was abandoned. The authorities have not released the details on the amount of money robbed from the woman. Both the Lawton's are accused of sexually assaulting her on Sunday, November 3.

The woman was dumped without food or water and was suffering from cold and exposure when the military officials found her. She was taken to a hospital and released after treatment before she went back to Nevada.

Th were jailed on bail of $4.5 million and $3.5 million respectively according to the LA County district attorney's office. Both the Lawtons were charged with each count of kidnapping to commit a robbery, attempted murder, kidnapping from outside the state, rape and three counts of first-degree ATM robbery, reported Associated Press.

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