WASHINGTON – The Maryland man who attacked four women after contacting them through their Craigslist ads was sentenced Thursday to 30 years in prison.
Edgar D. Romero, 26, of Bladensburg, contacted numerous women, including the four he attacked, between December 2008 and February 2009 through Craigslist ads for erotic services. According to prosecutors, he and an accomplice met the four victims at a D.C. hotel.
Prosecutors say Romero and his accomplice pulled out either a knife or a gun during the attacks and threatened to kill the victim if she didn’t cooperate. They bound each victim with cords or duct tape and Romero stole their money, cell phones, laptops, IDs and credit cards.
Romero sexually assaulted two victims and helped his accomplice sexually assault one of them. In each instance the two then left after a final threat to harm the victims if they ever told the police, prosecutors say.
Romero was arrested on Feb. 27, 2009. He pleaded guilty in September 2010 to two counts of first-degree armed sexual abuse, one count of first-degree burglary and one count of armed robbery. Each count relates to a different victim.
He is required to register as a sex offender and will be placed on supervised release for the rest of his life when he’s released from prison.
Police say Craigslist has become a way for prostitution and crime to occur, despite the website’s claims there are policies in place to prevent illegal activities.
WTOP’s Heather Brady contributed to this report.
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