Man, 46, Jailed On Burglary, Kidnapping Charges Suspected In Costa Mesa Sex Assault
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — A man facing burglary, kidnapping and drug-related charges is now suspected in two break-ins and a sexual assault in Costa Mesa.
Police say Thomas Gaffney Walker is suspected in two break-ins that included a sexual assault and an attempted sexual assault of two women earlier this year.
Walker, 46, is currently behind bars while facing several felonies in another case, including two counts of first-degree burglary, a count of kidnapping and a count of first-degree robbery, a count of sale or transport of a controlled substance and possession of a controlled substance with intent to sell.
He also faces a misdemeanor count of violating a protective order.
Costa Mesa police Lt. Paul Dondero told City News Service Walker was taken into custody on Feb. 27 on those charges.
He has been denied bail.
Dondero said authorities are now presenting a case to prosecutors accusing Walker of burglary, assault with intent to commit rape, forced oral copulation and false imprisonment.
The charges stem from an incident on January 27, in which an assailant entered a 32-year-old woman's apartment on Mendoza Drive near Mission Drive through an unlocked sliding glass door and attempted a sexual assault.
A similar incident was reported on February 13 at a home on Valencia Street near La Salle Avenue, where a man sexually assaulted a woman at knifepoint in her bathroom.
Walker's attorney, Roger Sheaks, noted the new charges pending against his client have yet to be formally filed.
"At this point, I've been told informally that additional cases are in the process of being filed that allege sexual conduct," Sheaks said.
A hearing is scheduled for August 22.
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