Man to go on trial for alleged rape and stabbing in Costa Mesa

A jury trial is set to begin Wednesday for a man accused of raping and attempting to murder a woman in Costa Mesa and sexually assaulting another in Santa Ana, according to court documents.

Juan Carlos Martinez Quintas, 30, is accused of stabbing a 26-year-old woman in the left temple after raping her, according to a news release from the Orange County district attorney’s office.

Prosecutors allege that Martinez Quintas pulled up to the woman as she was walking along Harbor Boulevard toward McFadden Avenue at about 10:30 p.m. on May 8, 2008, and offered her a ride to a Motel 6 in Costa Mesa, where she was staying.

After she got in, he then allegedly drove in the opposite direction, pulled out a switchblade and demanded sex or money.

At a location near MacArthur and Harbor boulevards in Costa Mesa, he allegedly raped her and cut her face from her neck to her cheek and then stabbed her in the stomach, the D.A.’s news release said.

The woman is believed to have escaped, running naked from the car to the parking lot of a nearby motel for help. She was taken to Western Medical Center in Santa Ana, where she was treated for her wounds and examined for signs of sexual assault.

In a separate case on Aug. 21, 2008, Martinez Quintas is accused of attacking a 23-year-old woman in Santa Ana. The woman, prosecutors allege, was sitting on a bus bench at 11:30 p.m. and began to walk away from the bench when Martinez Quintas allegedly pulled his truck up to the curb, parked and ran up to the woman, grabbing her by the neck.

Martinez Quintas allegedly demanded sex or money and forced the woman back into his truck, driving to an industrial area where he allegedly forced the woman into oral copulation at knifepoint, cutting her on the hands as she tried to escape.

He is set to appear at Santa Ana’s Central Justice Center.

Martinez Quintas is charged with kidnapping to commit rape, oral copulation – force or injury, assault with a deadly weapon, attempted murder, rape, duress or menace. He faces a sentence enhancement for inflicting great bodily harm, according to court documents.

If convicted, he faces up to 80 years to life in prison, as well as potential deportation, according to the release.