Indio police officer accused of rape pleads not guilty

An Indio police officer accused of raping a young woman pleaded not guilty to rape and other felony charges at his arraignment on Friday.

Sergio Ramirez, 34, is charged with rape by force or fear and oral copulation by force or violence.

According to a Riverside County sheriff’s investigator’s declaration in support of an arrest warrant, the 18-year-old victim identified as “V-1” was staying at Ramirez’s house starting in June, and planned to remain at the home until Aug. 8, when she planned to move away for college.

However, on Aug. 6, the victim said Ramirez came into her room in the early morning hours while she was asleep and laid down next to her. She “felt uncomfortable,” moved to another room, and fell asleep on a couch, but woke again to Ramirez allegedly sexually assaulting her.

The declaration states that “she could not believe he was doing this because he has been such a positive role model for her and he is a police officer. She viewed him as a father figure.”

Following the assault, she fled to a friend’s home down the street and then went to Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage, where she underwent a sexual assault examination. Sheriff’s deputies say that Ramirez’s wife texted the victim, asking her to lie to police and to not undergo the sexual assault examination at the hospital.

The declaration also states that Ramirez’s wife washed the clothes that the victim was wearing during the alleged sexual assault. A second sheriff’s investigator declaration for an arrest warrant states that “family members have already attempted to dissuade the victim from moving forward with the case” and expressed concern for the victim’s safety, as Ramirez knew where she lived and deputies were unable to locate one of
Ramirez’s firearms.

Ramirez was arrested Aug. 31 in Indio but was released the following day on $85,000 bail.