Man sent to prison for child rape in Norristown

NORRISTOWN >> A man who had been residing at the Norristown residence of a woman he met on Facebook admitted to raping a 10-year-old girl in the residence and is headed to state prison.

Yobani Lopes, 33, who had been living temporarily at a residence on West Marshall Street, was sentenced in Montgomery County Court to 10-to20-years in a state correctional facility after he pleaded guilty to a felony charge of rape of a child in connection with the February 2018 incident. Judge Todd D. Eisenberg, who accepted a plea agreement in the matter, also ordered Lopes to have no contact with the victim or other minors.

Lopes, once he is paroled, also faces a lifetime requirement to report his address to state police in order to comply with Pennsylvania’s Sexual Offender Registration and Notification Act.

An investigation began on Feb. 22 when Norristown police were dispatched to the West Marshall Street residence for a report of an assault victim. A woman who resided at the residence told police a 10-year-old girl revealed she had been sexually assaulted by Lopes while she was in his company at the residence.

The woman told detectives “the suspect was a male she met on Facebook” and had been letting stay at her residence for several days, according to the criminal complaint filed by Norristown Detective David Crawford.

When the girl was interviewed by detectives and child social workers she revealed that she awoke during the night to find Lopes sexually assaulting her, according to the arrest affidavit. The girl told detectives she attempted to scream out for help but Lopes stopped her by covering her mouth with his hand.

Eventually, the girl managed to scream out for help and others in the residence came to her aid. When Lopes was confronted by the woman who allowed him to stay at her home he allegedly asked her not to call the police, court papers indicate.

The woman immediately called police.

Other charges of sexual assault, corruption of a minor, indecent assault and simple assault were dismissed against Lopes in exchange for his guilty plea to the most serious charge of rape of a child.