Lake Station Man Charged With Multiple Felonies Including Rape
On 08-01-2024 at approximately 8:58 PM, officers of the Lake Station Police Department were dispatched to the 2900 block of East 35th Avenue to respond to a call for service. Once there, patrol officers determined that an unknown male subject in a vehicle attempted to abduct a female resident who was outside talking on her phone alone, according to Lake Station Police.
She reported that a weapon was used but was able to fight off her attacker and he had fled in his vehicle prior to officerโs arrival.
On 08-02-2024, at approximately 1:00 AM, officers of the Hobart Police Department were dispatched to an address in their jurisdiction to respond to a call of a rape, according to Lake Station Police.
On arrival officers determined that the female victim there had fled to that location where her parents lived, but the rape had just occurred at her residence, where she resided alone, in the 3500 block of Minnesota Street in Lake Station.
Patrol officers from both jurisdictions began working together and it became clear that both incidents were related due to the proximity and similar suspect descriptions.
Ultimately, within hours, patrol officers located two suspects and a suspect vehicle in the 3500 block of Oregon Street, at a residence directly behind the residence in which the female was raped, and about a block away from where the attempted abduction took place.
On 08-03-2024, detectives with the Lake Station Police Department completed the investigation. The Lake County Prosecutorโs Office accepted the following charges against Gendri Cano Del Valle (32 years old from Lake Station, IN):
COUNT I – RAPE (a Level 1 Felony)
COUNT II – BURGLARY (a Level 2 Felony)
COUNT III – CRIMINAL CONFINEMENT (a Level 3 Felony)
COUNT IV – CRIMINAL CONFINEMENT (a Level 3 Felony)
COUNT V – CRIMINAL CONFINEMENT (a Level 4 Felony)
COUNT VI – BATTERY RESULTING IN BODILY INJURY (a Class A Misdemeanor)
COUNT VII – THEFT (a Class A Misdemeanor)
The other subject initially taken into custody was released after the investigation revealed he was not involved in either incident, police said. All subjects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Mugshot will be updated on this post when made available.
