A 19-year-old woman said she expected to have sex with a man for money, but not to get raped by two men at gunpoint and receive no money.
The Philadelphia woman testified on Wednesday that she agreed to meet a man named “Kareem” in Bristol in the middle of the night of Aug. 18 after being contacted through an ad on a website known for advertising prostitutes.
She said she feared for her life that night.
The woman was among three witnesses who testified at a preliminary hearing for Bristol residents Kareem Evans, 21, and Qudre McMilan, 18, who are accused of multiple counts of rape, robbery, involuntary deviant sexual intercourse and conspiracy in the alleged incident.
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| Qudre McMilan (L), Kareem Evans |
The woman testified that Evans contacted her through her Backpage ad around 3:30 a.m. and they made arrangements to meet in the 200 block of Market Street in the borough. The woman said someone drove her to the location and was supposed to wait for her return.
When she arrived, she said Evans, whom she had never met before, waived her down and told her they were going to a nearby duplex in the 200 block of Cedar Avenue. The woman said the house appeared vacant with almost no furniture inside and working lights only in a back room.
She said she left the backroom after hearing a noise and encountered a second man — whom authorities say was McMilan — in the hallway with a shotgun pointed at her. She told the gunman that he could have her phone, but added she had no money.
The woman ended up back in the room with Evans, who choked her until she fell to the floor and almost passed out, she said. The second man turned off the light, entered the room and took her phone, she added.
“I kept yelling, I have children,” she said.
Evans demanded she perform a sex act on him, she said. She refused at first but complied after he threatened to punch her, she said. Evans then raped her, and the second man did, too, she testified.
The woman told the court that she never saw the second man's face or heard his name, since he was behind her when he threatened her with the gun in the hallway. She said he wore bright orange socks and a pair of Nike “Kevin Durant” sneakers.
After the men left, she said she ran back to Market Street but her driver had left. She flagged down a passing motorist, who called police.
She added that the men didn’t return her phone and she was not paid.
On cross examination by public defender Josh Buchanan, who represents Evans, the woman said she expected to get money when she went to the house.
Bucks County Detective Eric Landamia, who was part of the investigation, testified that Evans admitted he contacted the woman for sex and that she charged $150 an hour. Evans claimed that he performed a sex act on the woman, and she performed one on him and they had sex. He also claimed he paid the woman for her services, Landamia said.
Bucks County Detective Tim Carroll testified that he executed a search warrant at Evans’ home where he recovered a cellphone that matched the description of the woman's phone. He also said McMilan admitted that he and Evans had sex with the woman.
Following the two hour hearing — which was delayed for 30 minutes after the prosecution requested that the woman be allowed to use an alias while testifying, and the defense objected — Bristol District Judge Frank Peranteau held both men for trial in Bucks County Court on all charges. They remain incarcerated in Bucks County prison in lieu of 10 percent of $5 million bail apiece.
Jo Ciavaglia: 215-949-4181; email: jciavaglia@calkins.com; Twitter: @jociavaglia
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