Woman contacts 911 during rape in Utah County, police say

SARATOGA SPRINGS — A woman being raped inside a pickup truck was rescued and her attacker arrested after she tricked the perpetrator into letting her call 911, police say.

Early Thursday, a Utah Valley police dispatcher received a 911 call from a woman who obviously could not speak openly about her situation, according to a police affidavit filed in 4th District Court. Thanks to the quick thinking of both the victim and the dispatcher, police were able to find the suspect's vehicle within 15 minutes.

The woman acted as though the dispatcher was her sister. The dispatcher used yes-or-no questions to determine the woman was being held against her will.

During the conversation, the woman also whispered "help me" to the dispatcher, according to the affidavit.

The incident began early Thursday when a man picked the woman up to buy cigarettes, the affidavit states. The two met through a mutual friend and had known each other for about a month.

While in the parking lot of a convenience store, the woman told police, she drank one swallow of what she thought was vodka that the man provided. Shortly afterward, she said she began to feel "extremely tired," the affidavit states.

The woman asked to be taken home, but the man said he needed to run some errands first and proceeded to drive from Salt Lake City down Redwood Road to the west side of Utah Lake, said Utah County Sheriff's Sgt. Matt Higley. At that point, the woman passed out.

"She doesn't remember a whole lot about what happened," Higley said, adding that detectives plan to investigate whether any date rape drugs were used.

When she awoke, she said she was naked and the man was on top of her. When he got off her and started driving again, the woman told him she needed to call her sister because she would be worried about her, Higley said.

Initially, the two were in an area with no phone service. When she did get through to 911, the dispatcher at first had a hard time getting information, Higley said. The man continued to sexually assault the woman while he was driving and she was on the phone, the affidavit states.

"Due to persistent questioning, the dispatcher learned she was being held against her will," Higley said. "The dispatcher did a great job."

At one point, the victim told the man that her sister wanted to know where they were.

"He said, 'We're south of Saratoga Springs and west of Utah Lake,' " Higley said.