The Hindu : International / India & World : Sex crimes: more cases booked against designer

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Wednesday, Mar 21, 2007
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Sex crimes: more cases booked against designer

Anand Jon has been slapped with 13 criminal charges

Silicon Valley: More trouble is in store for India-born fashion designer Anand Jon, who has been accused of rape, with four more women levelling sexual assault charges against him.

The prosecution in Los Angeles on Monday slapped 13 criminal charges on the 33-year-old designer for a range of sex offences following complaints from the four women. One of the alleged victims is a 17-year-old. Jon, who has dressed celebrities including Paris Hilton, was last week charged with rape and a string of sex crimes on three persons — two women and a 15-year-old girl. Jon, whose legal name is Anand Jon Alexander, is at present in jail on a $1.3 million bail. He will appear in Los Angeles County Superior Court on April 4 for arraignment. The criminal complaint alleges that the crimes occurred between March 2004 and March 2007.

"He (Jon) lured these girls to be models and once here sexually assaulted them," said Jane Robison, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County district attorney's office. "This is an ongoing investigation and we believe there may be numerous other victims." Authorities in New York have also opened an investigation into whether the designer assaulted women there, Ms. Robison said.

He was initially arrested on March 13 for rape, lewd acts upon a child, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, sexual battery by restraint and attempted forcible oral copulation of three women. — PTI

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