A West Jordan man leveraged an online singles group to set up parties where he could lure and allegedly sexually assault women, according to Davis County Sheriff’s Office charging documents.
Detectives arrested Kevin Linford, 45, at the Salt Lake City airport on Tuesday after he returned from a trip out of the country. They took him to jail on suspicion of raping one woman and sexually assaulting another, both on Aug. 6.
Additional women have contacted police to report alleged sexual assaults by Linford, including two others at the Aug. 6 party, according to a sheriff’s office probable cause statement. Multiple cases are being investigated, the document said.
Investigators said Linford is an administrator of a popular singles group on Facebook through which he creates and hosts parties and other events. During the event at a Fruit Heights home, Linford invited a woman into a bedroom and asked her to kiss him, which she did, the arrest affidavit said. He then allegedly grabbed the woman’s face and she pushed him away, saying she did not want to have sex. He then allegedly forcibly pulled her into a bedroom closet and raped her.
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This article is published through the Utah News Collaborative, a partnership of news organizations in Utah that aim to inform readers across the state.
