SAN FRANCISCO—A suspect has pleaded not guilty to kidnapping and repeatedly raping a 74-year-old woman. Manuel Jesus Amador, 47, kidnapped the victim from a neighborhood street and left her semi-conscious on the sidewalk. He pleaded not guilty in San Francisco Superior Court on Thursday, May 23.
Amador addressed the judge through an interpreter and waived his right to a preliminary hearing before being escorted back to jail. Judge Christine Van Aken did not rule on the prosecutors’ motion to have Amador held without bail, giving his attorney, Tal Klement, additional time to respond to the motion.
Court documents allege that Amador kidnapped the victim on May 10, as she was walking along Prague Street near McLaren Park. The San Francisco Police Department reported that at 7:40 a.m., the victim was walking towards a friends house, when the suspect forced her into his home in San Francisco’s Crocker-Amazon neighborhood and sexually assaulted her for four to five hours, while a Pitbull dog bit at her. According to authorities, Amador then dressed the victim and left her on the street.
Ingleside Station officers started an immediate investigation which included a canvass of the area and the victim’s walking route. The SFPD Special Victims Unit assumed the investigation. On May 17, SVU investigators, assisted by Ingleside Station personnel, served a search warrant at Amador’s residence on the 1000 block of Prague Street.
He has been charged with rape, assault with a deadly weapon, assault by means likely to cause great bodily injury, kidnapping, kidnapping for ransom, false imprisonment, battery causing serious bodily injury and elder abuse. The victim underwent surgery and is currently recovering at San Francisco Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital.
Amador’s attorney indicated he has no criminal record and has lived in San Francisco for 20 years. He is currently in police custody and is being held at the San Francisco County Jail.
Due to pending identification matters Amador’s booking photo is not being released at this time. The SFPD is still investigating the case. Anyone with information is asked to contact the SFPD 24 Hour Tip Line at (415) 575-4444 or Text a Tip to TIP411 and begin the text message with SFPD. Tipsters may remain anonymous.
Written By Hilary Dorsey and Donald Roberts
