Bernadette Greene-Placentia, a Democratic congressional candidate in Arizona, says she was raped while repairing a campaign sign at night in Sun City, a suburb of Phoenix. She has since filed a report with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office.
Greene-Placentia told police she was walking back to her vehicle in August when she was struck on the head. She said that, after regaining consciousness, she was being held down and sexually assaulted by a man.
She alleged that a second man then assaulted her while she resisted by kicking her feet. According to the police report, she recalled one of the men saying: “Democratic b****”.
Greene-Placentia said she told her husband and her campaign about the alleged attack the following day, but reported it to police two weeks later.
Her campaign said she had spoken publicly because she knew many survivors struggled in silence and hoped her experience would reassure others that they were not alone.
Greene-Placentia is a long-haul trucker who moved to Arizona’s 8th District in 2017. She is challenging Republican Representative Abe Hamadeh.
Mr Hamadeh said authorities should investigate the allegations thoroughly, including examining all possible camera footage from the time and location, so that any offence could be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office said the investigation into the incident remained ongoing.
