The rape of a woman in the Metro in Philadelphia, USA could have been avoided if her passengers, instead of filming this “terrible crime” with their mobile phones, had used them to call the Police, the Service claims. Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA).
The woman was raped shortly after 9pm on Oct. 13 on a SEPTA train in charge of public transportation in Philadelphia. “There were other people on the train who witnessed this horrific act and could have stopped in time if a passenger had called 911,” said a police spokesman, SEPTA spokesman John Golden.
SEPTA and the Upper Darby Police Department, which is investigating the case, have not confirmed any other details, which were broadcast by the local media.
The videos from the security cameras of the train show the woman trying to repel the perpetrator, pushing him repeatedly while he first punches her and then attacks her.
According to local media, during the 45-minute attack, the other passengers videotaped the perpetrator with their mobile phones but no one intervened .
Eventually, someone called 911. This phone call, from a SEPTA employee who was off duty at the time, allowed police to stop the attack and arrest a suspect.
Fiston Ngoi, 35, is charged with rape, sexual assault and other offenses. Ngoi, who said he lived in a homeless shelter in Philadelphia, was remanded in custody and will stand trial on October 25.
He claims that the sexual intercourse was consensual , something that the woman denies. The woman had had a few beers at a bar after work and boarded the wrong train at 9.15pm.
A few minutes later Ngoi got on the train, sat down next to her and tried to touch her. The attack escalated into a rape at 9.52, according to local media.
