One of the men accused of the sexual assault on University Avenue appeared in court for the first time Wednesday, as new details emerged in the case.
According to a criminal complaint filed Wednesday, Marcus Bonner, 21, forcibly raped a 23-year-old Madison woman on the 500 block of University Ave. early on the morning of Sept. 4. He remains in jail and currently faces nine felony charges.
The four-page criminal complaint, in which Bonner and 20-year-old Anthony Freda are named as primary suspects, provided an account of the alleged sexual assault. Before Wednesday, police had refused to release any details about the case.
According to the complaint, the victim was collecting bottlecaps behind Ian's Pizza, 319 N. Frances St., at approximately 3:30 a.m. when she went into a ""dark alcove"" because Freda promised her a cigarette. The victim said she had been collecting the bottlecaps for an art project.
Almost immediately, Bonner and Freda attacked her and began grabbing her breasts, the complaint said.
Bonner allegedly then began ""digitally penetrating her vagina"" and attempting to lift her skirt off. According to the woman, Freda was trying to force the woman to give him oral sex at the same time.
Eventually, Bonner ripped off the woman's skirt and ""anally penetrated"" her, the complaint said.
According to the woman, Freda and Bonner set up and executed the sexual assault with precision.
""It seemed like they had done this before, like their moves were choreographed,"" the woman told police.
According to the complaint, the woman screamed at first, but later became silent after Bonner hit her repeatedly in the head and back. She also attempted to kick her assailants, but later stopped that defense as well.
""I was worried that they had a weapon, so I stopped struggling,"" she told police.
At some point during the assault the woman said she heard the voices of other people. But when two men appeared in the alley, they made no effort to help her, the complaint said.
Instead, they began laughing.
One of the two men was Mario Amaya, an employee at Ian's Pizza, who was taking trash out of the restaurant at the time. Amaya told police he thought Bonner, Freda and the woman were having consensual sex. After talking briefly to Freda and Bonner, Amaya took several pictures of the assault with his cell phone before fondling the woman for nearly a minute.
Shortly after Amaya took part in the assault, the woman escaped onto University Avenue, the complaint said.
Several days later, Bonner and Freda returned to Ian's Pizza, found Amaya and recounted the assault. In the complaint, according to Nick Stratman, an Ian's manager who overheard the conversation, the men were bragging.
""Hey man, do you remember two nights ago?"" one of them allegedly asked Amaya. ""Remember that shit? It was crazy.""
Amaya then told his manager about the assault, which set the recent series of arrests in the case in motion. Freda was turned in by his roommate, who originally read about the assault in The Daily Cardinal, according to Assistant District Attorney Mike Verveer. Bonner was captured shortly thereafter.
Verveer called the assault ""vicious"" and said the charges against Bonner, who faces a possible life-long prison sentence, are ""very serious.""
Bonner's attorney, Catherine Nora, said bail restrictions on Bonner that effectively prevent him from entering downtown Madison were ""pretty broad."" However, Bonner also faces charges in Florida and will probably stay in jail in Madison.
Criminal Court Commissioner Todd Meurer, who presided over the hearing, refused to adjust Bonner's bail conditions in light of his current criminal situation.
""If anything is meaningless, it's the conditions,"" Meurer said. ""Because he's not going anywhere.""
Freda will appear in court later this week.
