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LAPD Officer Accused of Off-Duty Rape Pleads Not Guilty

A LAPD sexual assault investigation last year uncovered a link to another attack three years earlier, leading to the 33-year-old officer's arrest

A Los Angeles Police Department officer charged with rape after a department investigation linked him to a sexual assault three years earlier pleaded not guilty Thursday.

The November 2018 investigation involving 33-year-old Officer William Rodriguez, a 10-year LAPD veteran, stemmed from a reported sexual assault at his home involving a female acquaintance. That probe uncovered a second, unsolved sexual assault in August 2015 after information was entered into a statewide DNA database, police said.

Rodriguez was arrested Tuesday and charged with two counts of forcible rape with a special allegation of multiple victims.

His attorney spoke outside the courtroom Tuesday, saying the case involves two casual relationships Rodriguez had with women, and the issue is over consent. His lawyer also said he has confidence that when the totality of circumstances come out, Rodriguez will be exonerated.

Rodriguez was identified as the suspect through the Combined DNA Index System, the LAPD said in a statement. The system has searchable DNA profiles obtained from crime scene evidence. 

When his DNA was entered into the statewide database, it produced a cold hit notification, police said. A cold hit means one or more connections are made in the DNA database between an individual and a crime scene in the absence of a current investigative lead.

The 2015 case also involved a female victim who was assaulted under circumstances similar to last year's attack, according to the district attorney's office.

His attorney also said this was not a case of mistaken identity. 

Rodriguez has been relieved of his police powers, the LAPD statement said. He was most recently a member of the department's Valley Traffic Division.

The crimes occurred while he was off-duty, the LAPD said. 

"When one of our own breaks the trust of the people we are sworn to protect and to serve, it tarnishes the badge we all wear proudly on our chests," Chief Michel Moore said in a statement. "This arrest also reflects our commitment to pursue every lead no matter where the investigation takes us."

Anyone with information was asked to called detectives at 213-486-6910.

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