One suspect in rape case takes deal

Kim Smith

Monday, Oct. 7, 2002 | 9:25 a.m.

One of four young Las Vegas men accused of repeatedly raping a local woman entered a plea agreement Friday.

Jury selection in the trial of the other three defendants was expected to begin this morning.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Doug Herndon said Alexander Berrillos, 20, pleaded guilty to kidnapping, sexual assault, robbery with use of a deadly weapon and three counts of conspiracy.

As a result of his plea agreement, Berrillos will serve a life sentence with parole possible after 14 years, Herndon said. Berrillos was not asked to testify against the others.

Berrillos and Sergio Chan, 16, Oscar Chan, 15, and Daniel McDaris, 17, were charged with a series of crimes that shocked prosecutors and the police.

Police allege the Chan brothers kidnapped a fitness trainer at gunpoint as she walked to her car after finishing work last Halloween. Police say the woman was forced into her Dodge Neon, driven to a wash near Sahara Avenue and Sloan Lane and forced to undress.

Grand jury testimony alleges that one of the Chans kept a gun trained on her while she was sexually assaulted.

She was then tied up and forced naked into the trunk of her car. The victim testified that the brothers drove around and showed her off to Berrillos and McDaris, whom they picked up later. The two friends initially did not believe she was in the trunk.

She told police the defendants then forced her to again perform sex acts before leaving her with her jacket and shoes at Washington Avenue and Los Feliz Street.