SAN FRANCISCO—On Wednesday, October 7, the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office announced charges against David Vonstetten, 36, a San Francisco resident. The charges stem from an incident on September 26 at Bayshore Boulevard and Industrial Street in the city’s southeast Bayview District. The court held his arraignment hearing at 1:30 p.m. on October 7, 2026, at the Hall of Justice, and his bail was set at $1 million.
The charges against Vonstetten include sodomy of an unconscious person, a violation of California Penal Code Section 286(f)(1); sodomy by intoxication, a violation of California Penal Code Section 286(i); sodomy by force, a violation of California Penal Code Section 286(c)(2)(A); sexual battery by restraint, an alleged violation of California Penal Code Section 243.4(a); and felony false imprisonment, an alleged violation of Section 236 of the California State Penal Code.
On September 26, officers with the San Francisco Police Department responded to a report that a woman had been sexually assaulted in the Bayview District. They found an unnamed 21-year-old woman who told them she had been sexually assaulted in a tent on a hill by a stranger. She also told the officers that when the assault began, she was unconscious and therefore unable to give consent, but she woke in the middle of the assault. The woman left the tent, walked down the hill, and found someone who helped her contact the police. She was given medical treatment in an ambulance. Investigators from the SFPD’s Special Victims Unit arrived on the scene, and the investigation began, including gathering evidence and identifying the stranger as David Vonstetten.
At a press conference addressing this incident and the Warfield Theater Shooting, SFPD Chief of Police Derrick Lew said that after the incident, a department-wide crime alert was issued. He also said the accused is a homeless man well known to the department. On Saturday, October 3, plainclothes officers found the accused heading north on the 300 block of Bayshore Boulevard. After confirming his identity with the department’s Central Warrants Bureau, officers arrested Vonstetten, who had changed his appearance after the alleged assault was arrested.
He was processed at the San Francisco County Jail on charges that included felony sexual battery, felony false imprisonment, and felony sodomy. Police and the District Attorney’s Office conducted the investigation together. The SFPD’s SVU is conducting an ongoing investigation and has not released any additional information to the public, including the name of the alleged victim.
Anyone with information relevant to the case is asked to call the police department’s tip line at 1-415-575-4444 or Text TIP411 to Text-A-Tip, and start the message with SFPD. Those who do not wish to disclose their identity can remain anonymous. Victims of sexual assault should contact the police department. SVU investigators can be reached by calling 1-415-553-9225, and all emergencies should be reported by calling 911.
