<p>Defendant found guilty by jury of all counts in serial rape case</p>

Earlier today, after an approximately 5-week long trial, a Sonoma County jury found Tirso Dejesus Guzman, 28 years old of Santa Rosa, guilty as charged of 11 Counts of sexually assaulting three women in the summer of 2019. As a result of the convictions and sentencing enhancements, which were all found to be true by the jury, the defendant is facing life in prison when sentenced by the Honorable Shelly Averill on November 23, 2021. 

District Attorney Ravitch stated, “This defendant preyed on three separate women over the course of several months. He was calculated and committed heinous crimes against these innocent victims. We are very pleased that the jury convicted this man of all crimes and enhancements charged against him.”

On June 2, 2019 the defendant met his first victim, and after a casual dinner date at her house surreptitiously drugged her with methamphetamine. The drug had very powerful effects on the woman, which rendered her incapable of resisting numerous sexual assaults that defendant inflicted on her over a several hour period. 

The following night the defendant came across his second victim while she rested in her car around midnight. The woman was intoxicated from drinking and voluntarily agreed to do drugs with the defendant who gave her a powder to snort. The drug caused the woman to go in and out of consciousness over a prolonged period of time. Thereafter, the defendant took control of her vehicle, drove her around rural areas in west county before stopping and raping her in a field. The woman woke up during the course of the assault. 

In September of the same year defendant befriended a 75-year-old woman at the apartment for seniors where she lived. The woman stated she felt sorry for the defendant and allowed him to sleep in her home for two nights. During that period of time the defendant sexually assaulted her, which due to her severe dementia, she was incapable of defending against.

The case was investigated by the Sebastopol and Santa Rosa Police Departments and prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Marianna Green with assistance from DA Investigator Lyn McCarthy and DA Advocate Elizabeth Garcia.