The diplomat accused of drugging and sexually assaulting at least 23 women is facing new charges after being pictured for the first time. ...
The diplomat accused of drugging and sexually assaulting at least 23 women is facing new charges after being pictured for the first time.
Brian Jeffrey Raymond, 44, a former staffer at the US Embassy in Mexico, was arrested last October in San Diego on one count of coercion and enticement.
He is now facing two additional charges of sexual abuse at his U.S. government leased apartment in Mexico City, The Daily Beast reports.
An unsealed FBI affidavit details how he lured one California woman to the country for their second date. She had already 'blacked out' during their first date in February 2018 in the US, prosecutors allege.
In November of that year she visited Raymond again where she said she passed out again; the FBI say 77 disturbing images of the two of them were found on his devices.
In them Raymond is alleged to be holding up her eyelids and pulling down her underwear. The woman said she 'was unaware of the existence of any photographs and videos and did not consent to them being taken,' the affidavit states.
Brian Jeffrey Raymond, 44, pictured, was arrested last October in San Diego and charged in one case involving an alleged assault on May 31. He is now facing two additional charges of sexual abuse at his U.S. government leased apartment in Mexico City
Raymond, who left his job in June and moved back in with his parents, is accused of filming many of his alleged victims while they were unconscious, according to federal prosecutors.
Some of the images allegedly showed Raymond nude and aroused as he held victims' eyes open, played with their limbs and put fingers in their mouths to show they were unconscious.
Another alleged victim told them she she 'lost all memory shortly after arriving at Raymond's apartment, and the last thing she remembers is walking down a hallway with him.
'She does not recall having sex or consenting to sex. Nevertheless, she awoke naked in his bed, and her body felt as if she had been penetrated vaginally.'
Raymond, a former staffer at the US Embassy in Mexico City (pictured), has been accused of drugging and sexually assaulting at least 23 women after authorities discovered photos and videos of the alleged victims unconscious in his bed
The FBI started investigating after Mexican police responding to a call May 31 found a woman naked and screaming from the balcony of an embassy-leased apartment in Mexico City.
Investigators found more than 400 photos and videos on Raymond's iCloud account in which he appears to be filming unconscious women, many of whom he met on dating apps, according to court documents.
Raymond has worked for the U.S. government for 23 years in numerous countries, according to court documents. Prosecutors did not specify what position he held in Mexico other than to say he was working for a U.S. government agency at the embassy.
Roberto Velasco, director general of North America in Mexico's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said Raymond was the first secretary of the United States, a mid-level diplomatic post.
Mexican authorities collaborated with U.S. officials on the investigation that led to Raymond's arrest 'in order to bring to justice a potential series of sexual abuses that occurred in both countries,' Velasco said in a statement.
Raymond, pictured, who left his job in June, is accused of filming many of his alleged victims while they were unconscious, according to federal prosecutors. Some of the images allegedly showed Raymond nude and aroused as he held victims' eyes open, played with their limbs and put fingers in their mouths to show they were unconscious
The Mexican government emphasized 'its categorical rejection of any form of gender violence,' Velasco said.
Raymond has not entered a plea. Neither embassy nor State Department officials would comment on the case.
Raymond left his job in mid-June after he was questioned about the May 31 incident and his cellphones and lap top were seized, according to court documents.
Mexican police reported finding a 'naked, hysterical woman desperately screaming for help from the defendant´s balcony,' according to prosecutors. Raymond had been living there since August 2018.
The victim told investigators she had no idea that Raymond was filming her or that he had pulled down her bra, exposing her breasts.
The 23 other victims were discovered after investigators found hundreds of photos and videos, according to court documents.
If convicted, Raymond could face a maximum sentence of up to 20 years in prison.
Fluent in Spanish and Mandarin, Raymond has 'led an exemplary life' from all outward appearances, according to prosecutors.
'The fact that many victims in defendant´s case were unaware of his behavior until they were shown the videos and photographs made while they were unconscious is evidence of his unique ability to portray a very different public face,' prosecutors said in their court filings.
He continued to meet with women until September of this year in San Diego, according to court documents.
Raymond's apartment was in Mexico City’s Polanco neighborhood. It is one of the richest areas of Mexico City, a main hub for finance and high-end commerce
In one series of images, a man believed to be Raymond was seen pawing at a woman's breast and pulling down her shorts while she was unconscious, court documents state.
Raymond allegedly texted the woman the next morning, writing: '[H]opefully you aren't too hung over today.'
'Hey!' she wrote back. 'Yesterday was rough. I had a massive hangover... lol. I had fun too! We have to do it again.'
The pair went on another date, during which the women remembered blacking out after a few drinks and then woke up fully clothed in her bed next to Raymond.
Prosecutors said the woman was unaware that she had been sexually assaulted by Raymond until after investigators showed her the images found on his devices.
Investigators also found incriminating evidence in Raymond's browsing history. Prosecutors referenced several of his alleged searches in court documents, including 'passed out black girl,' 'deep sleep,' 'Ambien and alcohol and pass out,' 'dissolve,' and 'passed out and carried.'
Despite being under investigation, Raymond continued to use dating apps to meet women from July up until his arrest in October, prosecutors said.
One of the women he met during that period told investigators that she only had hazy memories of having sex with him.
No comments