JOINT AGENCY VIDEO NEWS RELEASE - SERIAL RAPE CREW IN CUSTODY
Published: 03/12/2021
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 12, 2021
CONTACT:
Officer Ryan J. Railsback
Public Information Officer
Community Services Bureau
(951) 373-6032 (Media Contact)
JOINT AGENCY VIDEO NEWS RELEASE - SERIAL RAPE CREW IN CUSTODY
A joint agency video news release from Riverside Police, Ontario Police, and San Bernardino Police can be viewed at https://youtu.be/xajfaEVWlv8.
Riverside, CA – In February 4, 2020, our department responded to a local hospital in Riverside regarding a sexual assault investigation. The investigation revealed the victim had been approached by a male in the 1700 block of University Avenue in Riverside. The suspect convinced the victim to get into his vehicle, at which time he violently sexually assaulted the victim.
Through DNA evidence, the suspect was identified as 42-year-old Kenneth Watson. During our investigation, we learned that Watson was also connected to other sexual assaults in Ontario, San Bernardino, and Portland, Oregon.
An arrest warrant was issued for Mr. Watson, who was arrested by the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in Jurupa Valley in February 2021. He was later booked into the Robert Presley Detention Center for sexual assault charges and being held on 1 million dollars bail.
During the course of this investigation, it was discovered Mr. Watson was also linked to a sexual assault case that occurred in Portland, Oregon. A second suspect, 23-year-old Bernard Saddler, was identified with Mr. Watson in additional sexual assaults that occurred in the cities of Ontario and San Bernardino. Mr. Saddler is currently in custody in Las Vegas awaiting extradition back to California.
If you have any information regarding Mr. Watson or Mr. Saddler’s criminal activity that occurred in the city of Riverside, please contact Detective Janet Ramos at (951) 826-8716 or [email protected].
You can also call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at (800) 656-4673, or visit http://rainn.org [rainn.org]. If you wish to remain anonymous, please call the WETIP Hotline at (800) 782-7463 or visit http://wetip.com [wetip.com].
