A man accused of sexually assaulting a woman at a CTA bus stop in front of witnesses on a weekday morning this month told police he only touched her accidentally when a scooter passed by after he had consumed shots of “Canadian Diesel,” prosecutors say. But a judge rejected that explanation, calling the attack “violent and brazen” and ordering Jignesh Patel, 43, detained pending trial.
The 28-year-old victim did not know Patel when she arrived at the bus stop at 4001 West Fullerton Avenue at 11:15 a.m. on September 2, Assistant State’s Attorney Karen Crothers said in a detention filing. The woman and two others were waiting under an awning for a bus when Patel, who had been pacing nearby, smiled at her and then allegedly lunged toward her and grabbed her breast.
Patel squeezed tightly enough to cause pain and pulled the woman toward him, trying to hug her, Crothers said. She struggled to get away as he allegedly pushed her against the storefront. With the woman trapped against the wall, Patel grabbed her buttocks with both hands as she screamed for help, according to Crothers.
A woman working inside the business heard the commotion, opened the door and saw the victim on the ground screaming for help, with Patel standing over her. He had a hand on her neck and appeared to be trying to flip her over, Crothers said.
The victim’s skirt had been pulled around her waist when the witness intervened, according to Crothers. Patel then grabbed his bag and fled, prosecutors said. The woman from the business and others helped the victim while waiting for police. Officers arrested Patel after he returned to the scene. Crothers said the victim suffered scratches to her wrist and back, along with pain and bruising to her breast.
Patel denied touching the woman’s breast, telling police he accidentally touched her arm when “a scooter passed by.” He also allegedly told police he had been drinking shots of “Canadian Diesel” five or 10 minutes before the encounter but said he was not “too drunk,” according to Crothers.
Judge Ankur Srivastava granted the state’s detention petition for Patel, calling his account “self-serving and inconsistent with all of the other evidence.” Patel, who has no criminal background, is charged with criminal sexual abuse causing bodily harm and aggravated battery in a public place.
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