The pastor of a Flint, Michigan church says police failed to respond to a report of a rape at his church last week, leaving church staff to prevent the suspect from assaulting a second woman nearly an hour later.
A 24-year-old woman met 48-year-old Albert Haymer, seen below, and she told him that she was hungry. Haymer asked the woman to join him at the First Presbyterian Church where they could eat.
John Musgrave, senior pastor at First Presbyterian, said his staff discovered the woman in the men’s bathroom, and she had been raped. The man returned to the church about an hour later, and attempted to rape a second woman. However, church staff members were able to stop the attack and locate nearby sheriff’s deputies, who arrested the suspect.
John Musgrave, senior pastor at First Presbyterian, said his staff called police immediately after discovering that a 24-year-old woman had been raped in the men’s restroom of the church.
Musgrave said police never responded to the call, although an ambulance was sent to the scene. Flint 911 Director Stephen Todd confirmed that his department received calls from the church about the incident.
Todd said that the original call his department received from the church did not give enough information for dispatchers to know that a sexual assault may have taken place at the church.
Flint Police Chief Alvern Lock said, based upon the calls, there was never an indication that any criminal sexual conduct had occurred based upon the calls. “It wasn’t really clear, the extent of the situation,” said Todd.
Dispatchers were also unaware that the suspect allegedly used the church to commit the crimes and that the church was a potential crime scene, Todd said.
“(There was) simply not the knowledge that they had a crime scene,” Todd said. Todd said neither the church staff who called authorities nor his dispatchers were negligent in how they handled the situation, although he added he would have liked to see his dispatchers work with the caller to help clarify the situation as soon as the call came in.
Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton said his office has received some materials from the sheriff’s department on the sexual assault investigation, but no charges have yet been filed in relation to the assaults. The man has been charged with three counts of assaulting/resisting/obstructing a police officer.
Pickell said the suspect was on parole from previous breaking and entering and arson charges. He is set to be discharged from parole in 2013.
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via BlackMediaScoop
