Akron man found guilty of raping, kidnapping church volunteer

AKRON, Ohio - An Akron man was found guilty by a jury of raping a woman after offering to give her a ride to church.

The victim was walking to church, where she volunteered as a cook, just after 8 a.m. on May 15 when a man pulled his car into a parking lot and started talking to her. Summit County Prosecutor Sherri Bevan Walsh said the man, 25-year-old David M. Anderson, offered the woman a ride and she accepted.

That’s when Anderson assaulted the woman in the driveway of an abandoned house and threatened to shoot her, prosecutors said. He also raped the woman.

A neighbor heard the woman screaming and called 911. Prosecutors said police arrived just as the woman was able to get out of the car.

Anderson denied the allegations and told officers he knew the woman, but he didn’t know her name. Officers discovered Anderson’s DNA on the victim’s shirt, sweatshirt and pants.

Anderson was also found guilty of kidnapping. He will be sentenced by Judge Lynne Callahan on Sept. 11.