Gunman who forced motel guests to have sex, then raped women, gets 148-year sentence

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A man who forced couples staying in New Jersey motels to have sex at gunpoint, then locked the men in the bathroom and raped the women, was sentenced Thursday to 148 years in prison.

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Authorities said that in March and April 2012, Rasheed Powell, 43, forced his way into motel rooms in Elizabeth and Linden, N.J. In each instance, Powell forced couples to have sex at gunpoint before ordering the men into the bathroom

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While sexually assaulting the women, Powell demanded they compliment him loud enough for the men in the bathroom to hear, the Courier News of Bridgewater, N.J., reported. In each instance, Powell threatened the couples’ lives if they told anyone.

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A joint investigation by multiple law enforcement agencies subsequently gathered enough forensic evidence to identify Powell as a suspect. He was arrested in mid-April at Springfield Municipal Court while responding to a traffic violation.

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Several victims addressed the court Thursday during Powell’s sentencing. One victim called Powell a “monster.”

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Powell is reportedly a father of two children and has been involved in crime since his early teens. Fourteen years of his adult life were spent in prison for violent crime, according to the Courier News.

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