By Jeff Lehr
news@joplinglobe.com
DIAMOND, Mo. —
Investigators with the Newton County Sheriff’s Department arrested a Diamond man Tuesday afternoon in connection with an alleged rape the previous night.
Sheriff’s Detective Dale Brashers said a 27-year-old woman called for emergency help at 9:39 p.m. Monday, reporting that she had been physically and sexually assaulted in Diamond. The woman was taken to Freeman Hospital West in Joplin for treatment of injuries and a rape kit, he said.
“Apparently, she had fought with the perpetrator in the case and had some injuries consistent with what she alleged had occurred,” Brashers said.
He said the woman told deputies that she had been choked and sexually assaulted by a male acquaintance inside his home in the 400 block of North Main Street in Diamond.
Gilbert E. Hagebusch, 54, was taken into custody Tuesday afternoon on suspicion of rape, Brashers said. The Newton County prosecutor’s office later filed a charge of forcible rape against the man.
Hagebusch remained in custody Tuesday night at the Newton County Jail on a cash-only bond of $25,000. A date for an initial court appearance has not yet been set.
