A former Naperville taxi driver who twice sexually assaulted a woman he was supposed to be driving home has been sentenced to 25 years in prison by a DuPage County judge.
Sandeep Arora, 49, was found guilty of two counts of aggravated criminal sexual assault, two counts of criminal sexual assault and one count each of aggravated criminal sexual abuse and criminal sexual abuse following a six-day bench trial in March heard by Judge Michael Reidy, who also handed down the sentence.
The incident occurred July 9, 2017, when the victim and a friend caught a taxi at a Naperville business and directed Arora to drive them home, a DuPage County news release said. Arora dropped off the friend, drove away and then pulled over to attack the woman, partially ripping off some of her clothing and leaving bruises and marks on her body, the report said.
Driving away with the victim still in the cab, he stopped again to sexually assault the woman a second time, according to the report. She was able to free herself and fled, hiding in some bushes while she called a friend to pick her up before going to the Naperville Police Department.
“Mr. Arora committed a violent, horrific sexual assault on an innocent woman just trying to get home safely,” DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin said in a statement. “I thank the victim in this case for her strength and courage in bringing this matter to law enforcement and for facing her attacker in open court.
“With this sentence, Mr. Arora will now be safely locked behind bars for a very long time where he will be unable to prey upon unsuspecting, innocent women again.”
Under state law, Arora will be required to serve 19.5 years of the sentence before being eligible for parole, prosecutors said.
