Trial Ordered for Pair Accused of Abducting Woman, Leaving Her Naked Near Spring Valley Freeway

A man and a woman accused of kidnapping, sexually assaulting and beating a 21-year-old female acquaintance before leaving her naked by the side of an East County freeway must stand trial on multiple felony charges, a judge ruled today.

Catherine R. McCoy, 47, and Christopher Carrera, 33, are each charged with rape by a foreign object, kidnapping and other counts stemming from the Aug. 18 attack.

After a daylong preliminary hearing, Judge Laura Halgren ruled that enough evidence had been presented for the defendants to stand trial.

The alleged victim, identified in court as Amber, testified that she was punched by McCoy and dragged to an SUV by McCoy and Carrera after returning to a friend's home near City Heights about 7:30 p.m. to gather her belongings.

Amber said McCoy confronted her about sleeping with her boyfriend.

"She (McCoy) said she was going to slit my throat," Amber testified.

The victim said Carrera, who she had met through a friend, told her that if she tried to escape from the car, "he'd beat the (expletive) out of me."

While in the back seat, McCoy beat her about the face with a metal flashlight and sexually assaulted her with a golf club when she said she had sex with McCoy's boyfriend, the witness testified.

"She asked me if I was paid," Amber testified. "I said yes."

Carrera allegedly stopped the vehicle near the interchange of , where he pulled the victim out of the SUV by her hair and dragged her over an embankment, punched her in the face and kicked her. The defendants then allegedly drove off, leaving the victim behind.

A passing motorist saw her around 8:30 p.m. when she emerged naked from the bushes and called for help. The 21-year-old woman had been beaten severely and was incoherent.

McCoy faces 25 years to life in prison if convicted. Carrera would face up to 37 years to life behind bars  because he's charged with a separate assault on a teenager and his father in July, according to prosecutor George Modlin.

The defendants will be back in court Nov. 22 for arraignment in Superior Court.

–City News Service