Murrieta man charged with rape, kidnap of prostitutes

MURRIETA, Calif.

Melbrough Williams, 44, is charged with seven counts of rape by force, three counts of robbery, and one count each of kidnap for rape, oral copulation by force and sexual penetration by a foreign object. Also included are allegations of sexual offense of a kidnapped victim and sexual offenses with more than one victim.

One woman was allegedly raped in October 2002 in the Lake Elsinore area after being kidnapped from somewhere in Orange County. The other women were allegedly raped in the Temecula area this year in May, June and July, according to a spokesman for the Riverside County District Attorney's Office.

The women were all were working as prostitutes at the time of the alleged attacks. Williams reportedly met the three most recent alleged victims through a website and supposedly picked up the alleged 2002 victim on a street in Anaheim, according to the Riverside County DA.

Williams was arrested in Costa Mesa Friday and was held at the Robert Presley Detention Center in Riverside on $10 million bond.

News of the charges shocked at least one neighbor nearby Williams' Jacob Way residence. He called Williams a "nice guy."

City News Service contributed to this report.

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