MIDLAND, Texas (KMID/KPEJ)- The Midland Police Department arrested a man late last week in connection with an attempted kidnapping at an apartment building. Ismael Gomez-Ozaeta, 51, has been charged with Aggravated Kidnapping with a Deadly Weapon. 

Now neighbors in the building are speaking out about the incident saying the complex needs a “major security upgrade” in the form of better lighting, and private security, especially at night.

“It’s really dark around here. When the sun goes down, there’s zero visibility…there’s not enough lighting. If you walk out your front door, you can’t see anything in front of you. It’s hard to tell who’s walking around. We’ve had so many crimes around here,” said one neighbor, who wanted to remain anonymous.

She said when she heard the details of the alleged crime, she “wasn’t surprised”.

According to an affidavit, the investigation on January 19, officers responded to an apartment building on Dengar Avenue to investigate a possible sexual assault after a man called 911 and said his girlfriend had been attacked in the laundry room. When investigators arrived, they learned the victim had possibly been drugged by the suspect who reportedly “put a needle in her leg”, causing numbness. The victim was taken to a local hospital upon the recommendation of paramedics. 

While in the hospital, investigators spoke with the victim who told them she’d gone to the laundry room for some space amid an argument with her boyfriend. While in the laundry room, the victim said an unknown woman approached her and offered her some “shots” from a bottle she was carrying. According to the victim, the unknown woman urged her to take two shots of clear liquid to “make the effects stronger”. The victim said after she drank the liquid, she began to feel very drowsy and “out of it” and said the effects were unlike anything she’d ever experienced. 

Soon after, the victim said she felt a “prick” to her left thigh, which she believed to be a needle, though she admitted she never saw a syringe. After that, the victim said she felt a man wrap his arm around her neck, while holding a blade to her throat with his other hand. At that point, the victim said the man dragged her from the laundry room and across the parking lot to his vehicle, an older model maroon and silver extended cab truck. 

The victim said the suspect then threw her into the backseat of the truck and jumped on top of her and tried to pull her pants down. The alleged assault was ended when the victim grabbed a tool from a toolbox near the backseat and hit the suspect. The victim said she then kicked the suspect in the groin and ran to her apartment for help. 

Because she didn’t feel safe, the victim said she went to a friend’s apartment across the street to wait for police to arrive. While walking to the apartment, the victim said her leg began to go numb and she lost the ability to use both her legs.

The victim’s boyfriend later showed investigators the truck in question, which was still parked in the parking lot. Then, detectives showed the victim a photo line-up of possible suspects and said she identified Gomez-Ozaeta as her alleged attacker with 100% certainty. 

On January 20, Gomez-Ozaeta was arrested on a warrant as was taken to the Midland County Detention Center where he remained as of Tuesday afternoon. His bond has been set at $75,000.