Man accused of raping 24-year-old woman in NW Cedar Rapids

CEDAR RAPIDS - Police arrested a Cedar Rapids man Wednesday after a 24-year-old woman accused him of drugging and raping her last May.

The woman told police Russell D. Houk, 51, forced her to engage in a sex act May 19 at a residence in northwest Cedar Rapids.

She recounted that when she complained of back pain, Houk gave her a hydrocodone pill, claiming it was aspirin, and it made her feel 'limp.” He then had sex with her without her consent, the search warrant affidavit said.

Police said investigators tried to interview Houk, but he declined to speak with them on the advice of his attorney.

The warrant said bedsheets and a rape kit were collected as evidence. The affidavit, which was filed in July 2019, sought to collect a DNA sample from Houk.

Houk faces a charge of third-degree sexual abuse.

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