Five arrested in alleged rape of girl at California high school

Richmond, California (CNN) -- Police investigating the rape of a 15-year-old girl have arrested five people, a police spokesman said Wednesday.

Three juveniles and two adults are in custody in connection with the rape Saturday, said the Richmond police spokesman, Lt. Mark Gagan.

Authorities have described the incident as a 2½-hour assault on the Richmond High School campus.

Gagan said police arrested three of the suspects Tuesday night. They included Salvador Rodriguez, 21, as well as a 16-year-old and a 17-year-old whose identities were not released because they are juveniles, he said.

Rodriguez faces numerous felony charges, including gang rape, he said. It was not immediately clear what charges the other two face.

A 19-year-old, Manuel Ortega, and an unidentified 15-year-old were arrested earlier, he said. They are expected to be arraigned Wednesday, and the others are expected to be arraigned later this week.

Gagan said the suspects are likely to face "several felonies" in connection with the incident.

Watch a discussion with Gagan Video

Earlier this week, police said Ortega -- who has been described as a former student at the school -- faced charges of rape, robbery and kidnapping, while the 15-year-old faced one felony count of sexual assault.

Gagan said Wednesday that police expect to make further arrests.
As many as 10 people were involved in the assault in a dimly lighted back alley at the school, police have said, while another 10 people watched without calling 911 to report it.

A 1999 California law makes it illegal not to report a witnessed crime against a child, but the law applies only to cases in which the child is 14 or younger.

Police have posted a $20,000 reward for anyone who comes to them with information that helps arrest and convict those involved in the attack.

"We do not have the ability to arrest people who witnessed the crime and did nothing," Gagan said. "The law can be very rigid. We don't have the authority to make an arrest."

The school said it would hold a safety meeting for parents and students Wednesday evening to address the alleged assault.

The attack occurred on school grounds as the annual homecoming dance was under way inside the school Saturday night, authorities said.

The victim was found unconscious and "brutally assaulted" under a bench shortly before midnight Saturday, after police received a call from someone in the area who had overheard people at the assault scene talking about the incident, police said.

The girl was flown by helicopter to a hospital, where she was admitted in critical condition. She was in stable condition Tuesday, police said. Investigators canvassed the community with fliers, which included the reward offer, hoping to identify more suspects.

Richmond is north of Oakland on San Francisco Bay.