Two Kalamazoo Men Ordered to Trial in 2015 Assault Case
Two Kalamazoo men, Juan Esteban Paz and Mario Alexis Rodriguez-Barraca, have been ordered to stand trial on three counts each of first-degree criminal sexual conduct in connection with the alleged 2015 sexual assault of an 18-year-old woman. Prosecutors say the men invited her to Rodriguez-Barraca’s apartment, gave her marijuana and alcohol, and repeatedly assaulted her. The woman reported the incident in 2015, and the case was later referred to the Kalamazoo County Sexual Assault Kit Initiative, which investigates cases involving previously untested sexual assault evidence. Officials say the initiative helped bring the case forward years after the alleged assault.





