Man who fled to Mexico convicted of 2015 rape in Topeka
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Topeka man has been convicted of seven felonies, four years after he fled to Mexico while awaiting trial for rape.
Shawnee County District Attorney Mike Kagay said a jury on Thursday found Daniel Arreola guilty of a 2015 sexual assault in Topeka.
Prosecutors said Arreola forced his way into the apartment of a woman who was having a party in Topeka on July 11, 2015. He forced the woman into a backroom and raped her at gunpoint, Kagay said.
Arreola cut off his GPS ankle bracelet and fled to Mexico four days before his trial was scheduled to begin on Feb. 17, 2017. He was apprehended in Mexico and returned to Kansas in August of 2019 and has remained in custody since.
Arreola was convicted of rape, aggravated criminal sodomy, aggravated burglary, three counts of aggravated assault and unlawful tampering with electronic monitoring equipment.
His sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 15.
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This story was first published on Aug. 13. It was updated on Sept. 16 to correct an instance in which District Attorney Mike Kagay’s last name was used to refer to the convicted. Daniel Arreola was convicted of rape and other charges, not Kagay.