IRON COUNTY, Utah, April 24, 2024 (Gephardt Daily) — A man tried on charges that he raped a co-worker at a Paragonah dairy in 2021 has been convicted.
Miguel Angel Leon Gomez, 28, was found guilty last week in an Iron County jury trial. He was convicted of:
- Forcible sodomy, a first-degree felony
- Rape, a first-degree felony
- Object rape, a first-degree felony
- Forcible sexual abuse, a second-degree felony
The victim said that on the day of the attack, she arrived early for work, so waited for daylight in a work shed, pulling out her phone to pass the time.
“While she was waiting, Gomez came into the shed,” his affidavit says. “Gomez was a co-worker and (the victim) said she had known him for roughly five months at the time of the crime. (The victim) said that they had only spoken a few times during the period that they had known each other.”
The woman said before the attack, Gomez entered the shed and wrapped his arms around her. She tried to push Gomez away, she told investigators.
Another co-worker reportedly entered the shed, but did not see Gomez and the victim. When the other worker left the shed, the woman tried to follow him out, but was restrained by Gomez, the affidavit says. The woman told investigators she refused sex, but it was forced on her multiple times.
Gomez was fired after the incident, and went to live in Idaho until he was extradited last summer.
His sentencing is set for June 4.
