MSU Student Raped Woman Hours After Leaving #MeToo Rally, Prosecutors Say

woman raped hours after leaving #MeToo rally in Missouri

Prosecutors say a 22-year-old Missouri State University student was raped mere hours after attending a #MeToo rally on Saturday.

According to a probable cause statement, the woman told police she met the suspect, fellow Missouri State University student Zachary Alperin, 22, on Saturday after she attended the rally to support victims of sexual assault and harassment in Park Central Square. She told police she and Alperin went out drinking at several different bars in Springfield, Missouri, before they returned to her dorm on campus later that night. 

The woman said she allowed Alperin to stay and sleep in her room, but specifically told him not to touch her because she was drunk, according to the statement.

After going to sleep, the woman says she later woke up in the middle of the night to find Alperin naked on top of her, performing various sex acts. The woman told police she shoved him off of her after waking up. 

"I guess I tried to force myself on her, and I feel like such a terrible person for it," Alperin allegedly told police, according to Springfield News-Leader. 

Prosecutors charged Alperin Wednesday with second-degree rape and sodomy. 

Alperin is currently being held in the Greene County Jail on $20,000 bond. Court records do not show whether he is represented by an attorney. 

Photo: Greene County Jail


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