Suspect in series of rapes enters plea

Tuesday, Nov. 30, 2004 | 9:53 a.m.

A man accused of being a serial rapist who authorities allege kidnapped, robbed and raped several women at knifepoint this summer pleaded not guilty before District Judge Jennifer Togliatti and had his trial scheduled for May 2.

Ricardo Beltran, 28, is facing six counts of sexual assault with use of a deadly weapon, three counts of first-degree kidnapping with use of a deadly weapon, two counts of robbery with use of a deadly weapon and one count of open or gross lewdness.

In an attempt to explain why Beltran's attorney, Deputy Public Defender Bridget Hoffman, waived his right to a speedy trial, Togliatti said Beltran was facing the possibility of "14 life sentences" if convicted. Togliatti said waiving the speedy trial would give Hoffman more time to prepare his defense.

Through the assistance of a Spanish interpreter, a barely aubidle Beltran, who has a middle school education, said he understood Togliatti and Hoffman as he waived his right to a speedy trial.

The Sixth Amendment guarantees that right, and Nevada law specifies that a defendant has a right to go to trial within 60 days of arraignment. Defendants can waive that right and frequently do because their lawyers want to have enough time to properly prepare for trial.

Authorities allege Beltran used a knife to force his victims into a champagne or silver-colored convertible and drove them to nearby apartment complexes where he allegedly raped and robbed them.

Beltran was arrested Aug. 8 after a Metro Police officer posed as a friend of one of his alleged 19-year-old victims and said she wanted her cell phone back. The officer scheduled a meeting with the man who had answered the woman's cell phone, but he didn't show up. Beltran was found nearby in a vehicle matching the description of the rapist's car and was taken into custody, according to police records.

He is being held without bail at the Clark County Detention Center.