Police: Stranger breaks into home through back window, rapes woman as she slept on New Year’s Day

LAKE CHARLES, La. (KPLC/Gray News) – A 21-year-old man is accused of breaking into a home in Louisiana and raping a woman he did not know on New Year’s Day, according to police.

Officers with the Lake Charles Police Department were called to a home invasion around 7:50 a.m. on Sunday, Sgt. Brenda Treadway said in a news release.

When officers arrived, they found the victim, who they could see had been beaten. The woman told police she had been sexually assaulted.

Treadway said the suspect forced entry into the home through a back window, entered a room where the woman was sleeping, then beat and raped her.

Treadway said surveillance video helped officers gather a description of the suspect and his vehicle.

The suspect was identified as 21-year-old Joseph Ryan Milton. He was arrested at his residence later that day.

Police said they do not believe Milton knew the victim prior to the assault.

Milton was booked into the Calcasieu Parish Correctional Center on charges of first-degree rape, home invasion and second-degree battery. His bond is set at $250,000.