A St. Paul man accused of sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl, who turned to her iPod and Facebook to summon help, has died in jail.
Raymond Ernest Cesmat, 42, was found dead, hanging from a bed sheet inside his jail cell on Tuesday, Minnesota officials said. He had been alone in the cell and was discovered during a routine check on inmates, officials said.
Cesmat was charged with two counts of criminal sexual conduct in the first degree. If convicted, he could have faced 30 years on each offense.
On July 10, the 12-year-old said she was alone with Cesmat after her mother left for the night to stay over at her new boyfriend's house. The girl's mother and Cesmat had split up, but continued to rent the home together.
According to a criminal complaint, the girl told police Cesmat had taken her phone when she went to bed. He didn't want her texting all night, the girl said. She told officers that at some point in the evening she saw a flashlight moving down the hall and knew he was coming.
The victim said girl says when he first entered her room, Cesmat was naked and tried to pull off her pants. She said she kicked him and screamed. He eventually left and she rushed to her iPod and found Facebook to find help. The 12-year-old said she tracked down Cesmat's daughter online and asked her to call her mom right away.
As the child was sending that message, she said Cesmat returned to the room. This time, he sexually assaulted her.
In desperation, she kicked and scratched him until he left. She said she pushed a dresser in front of her bedroom door and then scrambled out the bedroom window. She said she ran to a pay phone at a nearby gas station to call her mom.