AN 18-YEAR-OLD WOMAN who used a social media app to livestream the alleged rape of her 17-year-old friend has been indicted.
A grand jury indicted her and a man on several charges including rape and kidnapping, an Ohio prosecutor said today.
The case came to light when authorities were contacted after an out-of-state friend of the accused woman saw the images, Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien said.
Marina Lonina and co-defendant Raymond Gates (29) were charged with rape, kidnapping, sexual battery and pandering sexually-oriented matter involving a minor.
The alleged rape involved intercourse by force, according to today’s indictment, which did not mention her age as a factor.
Lonina was also charged with illegal use of a minor in a nudity-oriented material or performance, related to the alleged use of the social media livestreaming app Periscope.
Periscope, an app for smartphones, uses a video function to allow users to stream events live.
Livestreaming
O’Brien said Lonina and the victim were socialising with Gates at a home in Columbus on 27 February when Gates raped the 17-year-old girl. Lonina used Periscope to livestream the assault, O’Brien said.
Lonina had also taken a naked picture of the girl the night before at Lonina’s house, O’Brien added.
Gates is scheduled for arraignment on Friday. Court records don’t list lawyers for either defendant to respond to the charges. They each face up to 40 years in prison, if convicted.
In February a Florida woman received a six-month licence suspension and 150 hours of community service after she livestreamed a video of herself driving drunk last year.
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