A University of Illinois at Chicago student was charged with raping a high school friend after a party.
After the “hysterically crying” 18-year-old victim told a pal what had happened at the Fourth of July gathering and Joseph Vinod was confronted, he just “smirked,” Cook County prosecutors said Friday.
The attack took place in Vinod’s bedroom, Assistant State’s Attorney Elena Gottreich told Judge Adam Bourgeois Jr.
The victim had been on the beach drinking all day with friends earlier, Gottreich said.
When she got to Vinod’s place in the 1300 block of West Taylor, she was intoxicated, Gottreich said.
Like others at the party, the woman had stowed some of her belongings in Vinod’s room.
At one point, she went to gather her items while others were in the room, Gottreich said.
But when the other revelers left, Vinod, 18, closed the bedroom door and went over to the woman, taking off her shorts, Gottreich said.
Vinod then continued to get on top of the woman and raped her, Gottreich said.
During the sexual assault, the woman told Vinod to stop and tried to push him off, Gottreich said.
Vinod is 6 feet tall and 190 pounds, according to a police report.
The woman was later picked up from the party by her brother and she was eventually taken to an area hospital where a rape kit was performed, Gottreich said.
Fresh blood was discovered during the testing, Gottreich said.
UIC spokeswoman Sherri McGinnis Gonzalez confirmed that Vinod is a student in the college of engineering.
McGinnis Gonzalez said that she cannot confirm or deny whether Vinod is under a student conduct process review but directed the Sun-Times to UIC’s Student Sexual Misconduct policy, which states that such behavior is not tolerated.
Meanwhile, in court, defense attorney Todd Pugh said that Vinod will probably not be returning to the school in the fall.
Vinod, who wore a lime green and yellow sweatshirt at his bond hearing, graduated from Hampshire High School where he played basketball and coached third graders, Pugh said.
The computer science major currently volunteers at Advocate Sherman Hospital, Pugh said.
A hospital spokeswoman later said that Vinod “does not currently volunteer at Advocate Sherman Hospital, and has not volunteered since March 2015.”
Bourgeois ordered Vinod held in lieu of $100,000 bail.
The judge also ordered that Vinod surrender his passport.
Should he post bond, Vinod must be placed on electronic monitoring and will be placed on a 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. curfew, Bourgeois said.
“What are we going to do with our young people?” an exasperated Bourgeois said after hearing the allegations surrounding the case.
