A fourth victim has come forward to Santa Barbara police, alleging she was the victim of an accused serial rapist who was arrested earlier this month.
Jerry Providence Bonhomme, 30, of Santa Barbara is being held in the Santa Barbara County Jail on numerous charges, including rape of an unconscious person, rape of an intoxicated person, penetration of an intoxicated person with a foreign object, sexual battery and use of a controlled substance.
Earlier this month, police detailed three incidents dating back to December 2011 in which Bonhomme allegedly sexually assaulted highly intoxicated women he met at local bars and parties.
On Thursday, Detective Brian Larson arrested Bonhomme on charges involving a fourth victim, a 27-year-old female, stemming from sexual assault. He is still in custody and additional cases are being investigated, according to Sgt. Riley Harwood.
The investigation on the newest victim began this week, after she contacted the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office to report she had been a victim of Bonhomme after learning of his arrest. She described four incidents of unwanted sexual contact with Bonhomme, spanning from the summer of 2007 to March 2012.
The woman described several incidents with Bonhomme, each occurring after a night of heavy drinking, with one incident involving marijuana use, and later the woman would go to sleep and awaken for find Bonhomme having sex with her.
The most recent incident occurred when the victim, now married, and Bonhomme were drinking at the Wildcat Lounge.
The pair returned to the victim’s apartment around 2 a.m., where they reportedly continued to drink and play cards. Around 3:30 a.m., the victim went to sleep in her bed, assuming Bonhomme would leave or sleep on the couch. She woke up to find him crawling into bed with her, and she stopped him and told him to leave. He left the room, and the woman fell back asleep, but she later woke up to find him undressing her.
Despite repeated attempts to get him to leave, the victim later awoke to find Bonhomme touching her as he stood beside her with his genitals exposed. She ordered him out of the house and told friends about the incident shortly thereafter, Harwood said.
In the case of this fourth victim, Bonhomme has been charged with rape of a victim unconscious of the nature of the act, assault with the intent to commit rape, burglary, and indecent exposure in an inhabited dwelling.
His bail for the new charges was set at $100,000.
— Noozhawk staff writer Lara Cooper can be reached at lcooper@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.