A man who posed as a rideshare driver and assaulted a woman in Suffolk County was sentenced to 25 years in prison on Monday.
Raul Guaman, 43, poses as a ride-share driver, drugged and sexually assaulted his victims and recorded them on his mobile phone. He also kept his victims’ IDs and mobile phones.
“This is a predator that has been hunting women in Suffolk County for nearly five years,” said Laura Ahern of the Crime Victims Center.
There were a total of 13 victims who did not want to be identified on camera at the time of sentencing.
Three of the victims testified in court. One of them called him a “scrap of earth.”
Another woman said she could not understand how Guaman broke into her home and sexually assaulted her in her bed. When I spoke and got home with my 5 year old, I had a gut feeling that something was wrong before I went to the hospital.
Many victims didn’t even know what had happened to them until a detective showed up at their home with a video of the encounter.
Guaman, who entered the United States illegally from El Salvador, was living in Bayshore at the time of the attack. He pleaded guilty to 11 charges.
Judge Karen M. Wirtis told Guaman, “You are a predator and a loathsome predator.”
The judge also praised the police investigation that led to the prison sentence.
Guaman must serve 25 years in prison followed by 20 years of supervised release.
The Crime Victims Center says it is working with at least 20 victims, but some victims don’t have enough evidence. All 13 of her people who participated in the trial have permanent protection orders.