| For Immediate Release July 26, 2006 |
Contact: | Susan Schroeder Public Affairs Counsel (714) 347-8408 Office (714) 323-4486 Cell |
GRAND JURY INDICTS MAN FOR BRUTALLY RAPING
AND MURDERING A VIETNAMESE STORE OWNER
SANTA ANA – An Anaheim man was indicted by the Orange County Grand Jury today for brutally raping and murdering a Vietnamese woman in her Anaheim market. Louis Acosta, 35, is charged with murder during the commission of a rape. If convicted, he faces life without the possibility of parole and could be eligible for the death penalty. He is scheduled to be arraigned on the indictment on July 28, 2006, at 9:00 a.m. in C5, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana.
On June 4, 1998, Acosta is accused of entering the D&D Market in Anaheim and violently raping the 42-year-old Vietnamese woman who owned and operated the store. The victim would sometimes sleep in the store behind the counter when the store was closed. Acosta is accused of murdering the victim and leaving her lying on a makeshift bed in a pool of blood. He is also accused of gruesomely raping the victim.
The defendant, who was not immediately identified after the murder, was linked to this crime in 2004 through DNA and footprint evidence while he was serving time in prison in Washington.
Deputy District Attorney Howard Gundy of the Homicide Unit is prosecuting this case.
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