LOCAL : Suspect in Irvine Rape Arrested in Indiana Following Car Crash
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Police in Indiana have arrested a man wanted by Irvine police for the rape of a 37-year-old woman, authorities said today.
Nasri El-Qadir, 19, was arrested in Highland, Ind., after he crashed a BMW he had allegedly stolen from an Irvine family, an Irvine police spokesman said.
Irvine police had launched a search for El-Qadir after receiving a report that he had allegedly raped a 37-year-old Illinois woman who was visiting her relatives in the University Park area in Irvine.
The woman told police that El-Qadir, who was renting a room from her relatives, awoke her Sunday morning and threatened her with a 10-inch kitchen knife before sexually assaulting her. Police said the young man disappeared after he stole the family’s beige 1981 BMW.
The spokesman said El-Qadir was arrested when Highland police responded to a report of a single-car crash about 10:25 p.m. Wednesday. Police discovered that the car was stolen after checking the BMW’s California license plate through the National Crime Computer.
El-Qadir is being held at Lake County Jail in Indiana while authorities process an application for his extradition to California.
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