Pittsburgh Post Gazzete
December 14, 2013
A teenager was arraigned Friday night on charges that he allegedly raped and beat a retired nun in the parking lot of St. Titus Church in Aliquippa Friday morning, according to court documents and Aliquippa police.
Andrew Bullock, 18, of Aliquippa has been charged with felony rape, aggravated assault and sexual assault, and misdemeanor charges of indecent exposure, simple assault and reckless endangerment, according to court documents. Mr. Bullock remains in the Beaver County Prison on $50,000 bond. Police say he has admitted to attacking the 70-year-old victim.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette does not identify victims of alleged sexual assaults.
Just before 11:30 a.m., the nun was walking in the church parking lot when she was approached from behind by a man who asked her if she needed help, she told police. She told him she didn’t and thanked him, at which point he told her to look down at his exposed genitals.
She turned to walk away and he grabbed her neck and started choking her to the ground, punching her head and face, according to police, and sexually assaulted her. When police arrived, she was unable to speak due to her injuries but wrote on a piece of paper that she had been raped.
The nun was taken to Allegheny General Hospital, where she underwent surgery for a dislocated lower jaw. She was able to speak to detectives before she went into surgery.
She is expected to be released from the hospital today, said The Sisters of St. Joseph in a statement. “The Sisters of St. Joseph are deeply saddened and heart-broken by the assault of one of our Sisters,” they said. “As we offer continued prayers of healing for our Sister, we also pray for the young man who has been arrested in the assault.”
The nun “is a passionate advocate of nonviolence, peace and justice, and each month she conducts a prayer vigil for peace in the chapel of our Motherhouse,” they said.
Police tracked down Mr. Bullock as someone who had been spotted in previous days wearing clothing that matched the description — a black hooded sweatshirt, dark pants and work boots. Investigators found that the tread pattern, size and width of his boots were similar to a footprint left in the snow in the church parking lot. Mr. Bullock at first denied being near the scene of the attack but admitted it under further questioning, said police.
Court records do not list an attorney for Mr. Bullock.