By Patrick Lohmann
Albuquerque Journal
BERNALILLO COUNTY, N.M. — A former county firefighter is being accused of raping four women since July, and investigators caught a break in the case earlier this month after one alleged victim quickly jotted down a useful license plate number as the suspect sped off, and another woman snatched the suspect’s driver’s license after he dropped his wallet.
Celso Montaño, 37, a former firefighter with the Bernalillo County Fire Department, is facing multiple counts of kidnapping, rape and assault charges after four alleged victims told police he raped them in his white Chevrolet pickup truck between July and mid-September.
In one case, an alleged victim told police that Montaño pulled his pickup to the curb and quietly asked for directions. W hen the woman stepped forward to better hear Montaño, the woman told police that he yanked her by the arm into his truck and had disabled the passenger door latches to trap her inside and rape her, according to a criminal complaint filed Oct. 8 in Metropolitan Court.
This isn’t the first time Montaño has faced rape accusations. According to a 2009 criminal complaint, a woman claimed Montaño kidnapped and raped her by the same means.
Montaño was convicted in 2011 only of kidnapping and aggravated battery and sentenced to probation, since the District Attorney’s Office dropped rape charges, because they were concerned about the witness’ credibility, according to DA spokeswoman Kayla Anderson.
The three other alleged recent victims told police they were either prostitutes or just accepted a ride from Montaño before they claim he raped them.
One woman was able to write down Montaño’s license plate number as he sped off, which helped investigators find his photo and present it to her in a photo array, in which she later identified Montaño, according to the complaint.
A second alleged victim told police she was able to pull Montaño’s keys out of his truck’s ignition before he shoved her out of the truck into an empty parking lot on Rosendo Garcia Drive near Old Coors and Bridge SW. As she fled across the lot, according to the complaint, Montaño chased her, ripped the keys out of her hand and ran back to his truck. That’s when he dropped his wallet, police said, and the alleged victim picked it up. Police said Montaño got a new driver’s license four days later.
Montaño was booked Oct. 9 into the Metropolitan Detention Center on a no-bond hold.
Copyright 2012 Albuquerque Journal