A Riverside woman who reported being raped in an alley behind an apartment building on Nov. 1 has recanted her story and now faces a felony charge herself.
Riverside Police Chief Thomas Weitzel on Tuesday announced that the department sought a felony charge for filing a false police report against 47-year-old Mary Ann Malik for fabricating a story that she had been followed home from the downtown train platform, struck on the head and then raped by a man whom she described as black and in his 30s. The Cook County State's Attorney's Office approved a Class 4 felony charge against Malik on Tuesday morning.
"There was no aspect of the allegation that was true," said Weitzel, adding that Malik gave police an audiotaped confession Monday night. "It certainly alarmed the community."
Weitzel said police had been working on the case nonstop since the evening of Nov. 2, when Malik reported the incident to police.
In addition to canvassing the area multiple times, police reviewed video surveillance footage from Metra and from Soul Amici Express, a restaurant at the train station. Police walked the area from the train station to the alley for an hour each night after the reported attack and interviewed public works employees who were working to fix a collapsed sewer line near the site of the alleged attack on the night it reportedly took place.
But the investigation ran into a wall almost immediately after Malik reported it, more than 24 hours after the attack supposedly occurred. Malik told police she could identify her attacker and would be able to help an artist produce a composite sketch. Police said Malik never showed up for that appointment.
Until Monday, police had been unable to make any contact with Malik despite repeated attempts to do so by phone and in person at her apartment. On Sunday, officers visited her apartment building and said they could hear someone walking around inside the apartment, but no one would answer the door.
Two plainclothes officers on Monday afternoon were able to track Malik down in Oak Brook where she works in a department store.
Malik had claimed she was coming home from work on the night of Nov. 1 and exited a westbound Metra train after taking a circuitous bus ride from work to the Metra stop at Harlem Avenue and Burlington Street.
However, police learned from Malik's employer on Monday that she had the day off on Nov. 1. After interviewing her at work Monday, police arrested Malik as she stepped off the bus at Harlem Avenue and Cermak Road on her way home from work.
According to Weitzel, the woman's motivation for fabricating the story was to convince her daughter to move back in with her. Malik reportedly wanted her daughter to see that living by herself wasn't safe.
The rape report has had some Riverside residents, particularly those who use the train at night, on edge. Weitzel said he has received calls from husbands wanting police to be present at the train depot when their wives get off the train.
"I've started receiving calls for special police response," said Weitzel.
The incident also got the attention of a community activist from Chicago's Southwest Side who gathered about 10 others and convened a press conference on Sunday that received some attention from TV and radio outlets in the city.
Raul Montes Jr., a resident of Chicago's Gage Park neighborhood, according to his website, called from more police foot patrols and better lighting in the alley. The alley in question runs around an apartment building on Forest Avenue and appears to be private property.
Weitzel and Riverside Village Manager Peter Scalera said they have no idea who Montes is and said he has never contacted them.
Link: http://www.rblandmark.com/main.asp?Search=1&ArticleID=8214&SectionID=1&SubSectionID=1&S=1
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8 comments:
"...recanted her story and now faces a felony charge herself."
"...the department sought a felony charge for filing a false police report..."
"The Cook County State's Attorney's Office approved a Class 4 felony charge against..."
I'm curious about this felony charge that Illinios seems to have for false reporting (to police). IMHO, all rape allegation which are proven to have been false ought to be initially charged as felonies. The problem has been that most jurisdictions do not have a statute by which making a false report can be charged at the felony level.
Ah, found it: Illinois Compiled Statutes 720 ILCS 5 Criminal Code of 1961. Section 26-1.
Much more extensive and detailed that what most states have on their books.
The salient points:
"(4) Transmits or causes to be transmitted in any manner to any peace officer, public officer or public employee a report to the effect that an offense will be committed, is being committed, or has been committed, knowing at the time of such transmission that there is no reasonable ground for believing that such an offense will be committed, is being committed, or has been committed; or "
And further down, in
Elements of the Offense, section (b)
"A violation of subsection (a)(2), (a)(4), (a)(7), or (a)(9) of this Section is a Class 4 felony."
More states need to follow the example set forth by the state of Illinois. For instance, IL's Section 4 alone is longer and more comprehensive that CO's entire false reporting statute.
"...whom she described as black and in his 30s."
To the surprise of no one who's been paying the least bit of attention to the false rape issue, the "It was a black (or Hispanic) man" ploy, to try to make a fabricated story seem more believable. Not only does she play to societies worst fears of the crime of rape, but she also tries to stir up racial fears and animosities as well.
What a gem of a woman. Perhaps an ideal feminist heroine.
slwerner,
To be fair, Riverside is on the south side of Chicago, so that likely wasn't due to racism, but due to the likelyhood that the area is predominantly black.
ESB - "To be fair, Riverside is on the south side of Chicago, so that likely wasn't due to racism, but due to the likelyhood that the area is predominantly black."
I suppose you have a point there. For all I know, Mary Ann Malik is black herself.
Still, it remains common for women who are entirely fabricating a rape claim to use either black or Hispanic as the description of their imaginary attackers. It might be just to fit the population demographics, or, it could be that they believe that by claiming it was a member of those two racial/ethnic groups, that they are more likely to be believed.
Can't disagree. The black/hispanic perp is all too common.
Riverside is an predominately white suburb with majority hispanic and black suburbs to the east and south. Malik is white herself and the situation played localy pretty much as slwerner first commented.
joel,
Do you have any links for that? I live in a northern suburb, and don't remember a thing on any of the stations about it.
Thanks.
here you go. sun times, tribune and a local paper.
http://www.suntimes.com/8689896-417/police-riverside-woman-made-up-story-about-being-raped.html
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2011-11-08/news/chi-cops-riverside-woman-made-up-story-about-being-attacked-20111108_1_sexual-assault-riverside-woman-train-station
http://rblandmark.com/main.asp?SectionID=1&SubSectionID=1&ArticleID=8214
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