MERCED- On June 12th a brave Merced woman posted pictures of a person on social media along with a description of her encounter with the stranger she said broke into her apartment while she was laying in her bed and proceeded to rape her. Amazingly she was able to snap photos of the alleged perpetrator as he was leaving her apartment and also video recorded him running away into the dark.
As a result of the woman posting these photos in a Merced Crime Reporting Facebook group, others came forward identifying him as Angelo Powers complete with matching tattoos from his own Facebook account. One woman even said he raped her mother several years ago behind a convenience store.
A background search would reveal he had a history with crime along with additional identifying information.
Now after social media helped identify the suspect, police have finally made an arrest linking him through dna samples. Merced is a little safer now, but Police are still seeking any additional information that can help this case:
Merced Police Department
PRESS RELEASE
Date and Time: June 12, 2019 @ 12:29 a.m.
Location: Confidential Address near 12th and “T” Streets
Incident: Rape (261(a) (2) PC
Suspect: Angelo Powers (33 years of age)
Case Numbers: 19-34501
On June 12, 2019 Offices responded to a confidential address near 12th and “T” streets for a report of a rape that had just occurred.
The female confidential victim was able to take a photo of the suspect as he was leaving her residence. Investigators were able to identify a possible suspect, Angelo Powers.
Detective Sam Sannadan obtained a warrant for a DNA sample on the suspect. The DNA samples collected from the victim matched Angelo Powers DNA.
On July 22, 2019 Detective Sannadan was able to obtain an arrest warrant for Angelo Powers.
On July 23, 2019 Officer Elliot was patrolling his assigned area and located Powers in the 1300 Block of W. 18th Street.
Powers was arrested for the warrant and will be booked pending a medical clearance.
Merced Police are asking anyone with any information regarding this incident to contact Detective Sannadan at (209) 388-7773, or the Merced Police Department Tipster Line at (209) 385-7826. The public can send information via anonymous text messages to police department by dialing “TIP411” (847411) and including the word “Comvip” as the “keyword” in the text message.
