Expert Advocacy

San Diego Woman Raped After MySpace Meeting

Two San Diego men, Brian Shippee, and Robert Melgoza, plead not guilty in San Diego Superior Court Friday for the alleged assault and battery and rape of a San Diego woman after a “MySpace Meetup” went horribly wrong. Another man, Vincent Barnett, Jr. was also involved and is currently being held in Arizona pending extradition to San Diego.

In May 2008, the victim agreed to meet Barnett at Palomar College and accompany him to a party. Reportedly, the two were friends through the social networking site, MySpace, and agreed to a meeting or “meetup”.

Prosecutors say that Barnett, and his companion Shippee, picked the woman up in their car. However, instead of taking her to the party, the two men took the woman to meet with a third man, Melgoza, at a camper. Allegedly, the three men then sexually assaulted the woman.

We are absolutely disgusted by this behavior and hopes that all three men are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. It is also a strong reminder that people should take every precaution if they are going to engage in “meetups” with people they do not know or have never met before.