Mom answers door and is sexually assaulted while child is home, UT officials say
A man is accused of robbing and sexually assaulting a stranger while her 5-year-old daughter was home, Utah prosecutors said.
Efrain Monroy-Lara, 30, is facing 11 felony charges, plus some misdemeanor charges, in connection with the attack, the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office said in a May 22 news release.
McClatchy News couldn’t immediately find defense attorney information for Monroy-Lara on May 23.
The 30-year-old and another man, who hasn’t been identified, are accused of entering the woman’s home March 8, prosecutors said.
The woman told police she heard a knock at her door and answered, thinking it was her roommate, but instead it was the two strangers, prosecutors said.
They “began stealing jewelry, money, and the (woman’s) credit cards,” prosecutors said.
Then, the woman reported, Monroy-Lara sexually assaulted her at gunpoint, a court filing said.
She said Monroy-Lara made her face a wall afterward and “told her that ‘was how he was going to kill her,’” the court filing said.
The woman said “she begged for her life and begged the (men) not to hurt her daughter,” according to the court filing.
The men eventually left, the woman reported, telling her they were part of a Venezuelan gang and would kill her if she called the police, according to the court filing.
Monroy-Lara fled to California and was later identified by DNA from a condom wrapper, the court filing said.
Prosecutors are asking that he’s held without bail.
“The alleged offenses are extremely violent and are not tolerated in Salt Lake County. My heart goes out to the victim-survivor that experienced such depravity,” Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill said in the news release. “I hope the filing of these charges is the start of her healing journey.”
This story was originally published May 23, 2025 at 3:19 PM with the headline "Mom answers door and is sexually assaulted while child is home, UT officials say."
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