A horrifying alleged sexual assault occurred in Socorro, Texas. But one scandalized member of the public seems unfamiliar with the details:

“I think that’s ridiculous. A 70-year-old man getting taken and raped by an unknown vehicle, you know,” Christian Nevarez, 23, said. He lives in the neighborhood and said he usually wakes up early and sees several people taking walks along the park. He said children also walk to school early in the morning.

REPORTERS: YOU ARE ALLOWED TO CLEAN UP QUOTES!!! OR EVEN, IF THEY ARE IDIOTIC, TO NOT USE THEM TO BEGIN WITH. Also, is Mr. Nevarez implying that it is somehow… more… inappropriate (?) to gang-rape septuagenarian men where Children Might See It? You know, couldn’t the rapists find a nice abandoned paint factory and do their dirty business there? Or is Nevarez just observing, generally, that many children the world over walk to school early in the morning? Also, gang rape = “ridiculous”?

13 replies on “An Appalling Crime, an Incomprehensible Quote, Another Reason to Stay Away from Panel Vans”

  1. I think the bit about children was to imply that this location should be a safe spot because the children frequently use it to and from school, but that this happened there was shocking.

  5. @2 dang you beat me to it. I would have to say that the image of a 70 year old man being taken and raped by a vehicle could be considered ridiculous.

  8. Some vans just don’t understand that no means NO.

    Srsly though, is ZEUGMA misunderstanding everything about this story on purpose?

  9. @#8 – Yes, in the Northwest it would be “truly outrageous”. In other parts of the country, too. It’s a regional thing but I’ve never tried to pin the poundaries. I know my dad’s family would say that and they were farm people from southern Illinois and Missouri.

  11. The slog “journalist” left out a very important part of the story… gee I wonder why:

    http://www.kfoxtv.com/news/news/elderly-…

    Thursday, Nov. 3, 2011
    Elderly man kidnapped, raped near Socorro park

    Four black men sought in what police call a hate crime

    By Jacob Rascon

    City of Socorro

     
    SOCORRO, Texas —

    Socorro police and the FBI are looking for four men who police say attacked and raped an elderly man who was out on his early-morning walk.

    Investigators said the 70-year-old was walking Thursday around 6 a.m. at Valle del Sol Park on Valle Rico Road and Valle Fertil when they said four black men got out of a late-’90s Ford or Chevrolet van or minivan and demanded the Mexican-American man to give them money. When he said, “No,” they allegedly grabbed him, threw him in the van and raped him.

    Socorro spokesman David Garcia said the men yelled racial slurs at the victim as they assaulted him.

    “These four people know each other well enough to do something like this in front of each other. This is an atrocity!” Garcia said. “This man was somebody’s dad. This man was somebody’s brother, somebody’s friend.”

    He said the victim was so badly hurt, he had surgery and is in serious condition at a hospital.

    “I think that’s ridiculous. A 70-year-old man getting taken and raped by an unknown vehicle, you know,” Christian Nevarez, 23, said. He lives in the neighborhood and said he usually wakes up early and sees several people taking walks along the park. He said children also walk to school early in the morning.

    Police said the attackers are in their mid-20s to 30s. Call Socorro police at 915-858-6986 if you have any information in this case.

  12. Another insanely stupid Slog post?

    It’s perfectly obvious what the witness meant. He was shocked that someone was abducted by strangers and hauled off in a car. He was shocked because it’s a place where many children walk. HE WAS IMAGINING THAT IT COULD AS EASILY HAVE HAPPENED TO A CHILD in a supposedly safe place.

    You might check at Fox News–I hear they have lots of openings for incompetent and obtuse journalists and media commentators.

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