Rexburg man charged for alleged rape when he was 16
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IDAHO FALLS — Prosecutors charged a Rexburg man as an adult for an alleged rape committed when he was 16.
Alonzo Padilla, 18, pleaded not guilty to a felony rape charge on Monday. According to an affidavit of probable cause, Bonneville County Sheriff detectives were told by the victim that Padilla raped her multiple times while they were on a date in June 2019.
The victim described in graphic detail various sexual acts Padilla forced her to do as she said no. Between the alleged rapes, Padilla drove the car to new locations and during the sexual assaults, the victim reported she either passed or blacked out. Padilla drove the girl home following the encounter, according to the probable cause.
The next morning, the victim told her mother what happened, according to court documents. The girl went in for a sexual assault examination and Bonneville County detectives asked Rexburg Police to help find Padilla. When investigators tried speaking with him, Padilla’s mother told them her son had retained a local attorney and he would not be answering questions.
In August 2019, detectives obtained a warrant to collect DNA from Padilla. Investigators drove to Madison High School, where Padilla attended school, and collected the samples before sending them to the Idaho State Police forensic labs. Court documents indicate that ISP determined the DNA was a match and it was 139 octillion times more likely to be Padilla’s than any other person.
The case was passed on to another detective and in September 2020, the sheriff’s office asked Bonneville County prosecutors to file a rape charge. Court records show that about a month before Padilla’s 18th Birthday, deputies arrested him and booked him on $100,000 bail.
The teen posted bail in full and hired Idaho Falls attorney Randolph Neal.
In court documents, detectives wrote about other alleged sexual assaults the victim reported — one in Chubbuck and the other in Bonneville County. Court records show Neal subpoenaed documents in those cases.
On Dec. 15, 2020, Padilla appeared for a preliminary hearing before Magistrate Judge Michelle Mallard. After prosecutors presented their case, Mallard determined there was enough probable cause to advance the case to the District Court.
Although Padilla is charged with a crime, it does not necessarily mean he committed it. Everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
The Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office did not release a mugshot of Padilla due to him being a juvenile at the time of his arrest.
A jury trial for Padilla is scheduled for July before District Judge Dane H. Watkins Jr.