BELLINGHAM - A 31-year-old Bellingham man was arrested Monday, Dec. 13, for allegedly raping an 11-year-old girl who was in his care. Manuel Villareal-Cruz was responsible for driving the child to school early Monday, but instead drove to a secluded driveway with the girl and had sexual intercourse in the backseat of his vehicle, Bellingham Police spokesman Mark Young said. Villareal-Cruz told police he thought the sex was consensual.
He was booked into Whatcom County Jail for investigation of first-degree rape of a child and felony harassment after threatening to kill the child's mother after she reported the incident to police. He was also booked on an unrelated warrant from U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
An explanation for the criminally deranged: there's no such thing as consensual sex with an 11 year old.