Man Accused Of DUI Arrested, Accused Of Raping Teenager

Tulsa Police say stranger rapes are relatively rare in Tulsa, which makes a recent case so concerning because they say a man picked a 15-year-old girl at random, threatened her with a knife, and raped her.

Investigators say Yander Ramirez had been in court earlier that day on a DUI charge, then was driving around town, drinking and forced the victim to get in his car.

Investigators say Ramirez had been investigated in 2019, accused of raping another 15-year-old, but no charges were ever filed in that case. They say because the pattern is similar, they're worried it's happened to others.

Tulsa Police say in this case, a 15-year-old girl was walking near 11th and Memorial on March 27. She told police Yander Ramirez drove up, pulled out a knife, and told her to get in his car. The victim said she got in because she was scared Ramirez would hurt her.

"He went to a park, had her smoke something off some sort of vape pen, and drink part of a beer. She feels he may have drugged her with that stuff. And ultimately, she reports he put her in the back seat and strangled and raped her,” said Lieutenant Darin Ehrenrich with Tulsa Police.

She told police Ramirez told her if she didn't meet him the next day, he'd hunt her down. She said she jumped out of the car without any clothes on and knocked on doors for help.

“What's reported to us is she did not know this guy. We cannot find any reason to believe he knew her before this incident. The investigation shows this was a random act,” said Ehrenrich.

Police say surveillance video showed Ramirez following and picking up the victim and at the park she described. Ramirez told investigators he was in court earlier in the day, then was drinking, and drove to a buddy's auto shop and stayed there for the night. Police say when they showed Ramirez the video evidence, Ramirez said he was drinking a lot and couldn't remember.

"They are very terrifying cases. There's no known history there. There's no reason for these two to be having contact, so to have the report that we do, and the means that he picked her up through threats and weapons, that's highly concerning to us,” said Ehrenrich. "Studies show that offenders that commit these crimes, most often commit multiple times.

Investigators say they are now taking a fresh look at the 2019 case where he and a 15-year-old girl were found unconscious in his truck at Mohawk Park.