Santa Rosa taxi driver charged in sex assault

In a courtroom packed with his wife and family members, a Santa Rosa taxi driver was charged Thursday with sexually assaulting a drunken woman passenger he picked up at a local casino in December.

Mehari Tekle, 42, faces two counts ?of digital penetration on an intoxicated person in the attack believed to have ?occurred after he drove the woman from the Graton Resort and Casino ?near Rohnert Park to her home. The CHP would not release information about where the woman lived or her age.

Tekle, arrested by CHP officers Tuesday after a four-month investigation, stood before Judge Robert LaForge clad in a blue jail uniform.

The Eritrea-born man postponed entering a plea, citing the lack of a Tigrinya language interpreter. However, his lawyer, Roy Miller, denied the allegations in an interview outside court, accusing the unnamed woman of hitting Tekle as they drove along Gravenstein Highway.

He said his client stopped the car and summoned police by calling 911. He has since cooperated with the investigation, including making several statements to officers, Miller said.

“I think this is ridiculous,” Miller said as he left the courthouse. “The charges are ridiculous.”

Prosecutor Barbara Nanney declined to discuss details of the case. LaForge granted her request to double Tekle’s bail to $200,000 and scheduled the next court appearance for Monday.

Tekle faces about 10 years in prison if convicted of the two felonies.

A CHP news release said the charges stem from a Dec. 18 incident when Tekle was taking the woman home from the casino. The woman ?was intoxicated and unable to consent to his advances, according to the CHP.

Tekle was identified as the assailant based on interviews, video evidence and DNA, the agency said.

His arrest came about four months later. His lawyer said officers posing as customers hailed a ride and arrested him on his arrival at their location.

Miller said it appeared from initial investigative reports Tekle picked up the inebriated woman sometime after midnight on Dec. 18. He said she was “loaded” into Tekle’s minivan at the casino. During the trip to her home, she attacked him, Miller said.

“My understanding is she hit him in the car,” Miller said. “Then he called 911.”

Miller could not say if she was provoked. He said people “do crazy stuff” in cabs. It’s a constant problem for his client, whom he said was self-employed. Family members said he had been driving a cab in the area for about two years.

“They are shocked and outraged,” Miller said of Tekle’s family. “This kind of thing hits home for them.”

You can reach Staff Writer Paul Payne at 707-568-5312 or paul.payne@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @ppayne.