BERKELEY — A Hayward man was charged Wednesday with forcible rape and other sex crimes in a Sunday attack on a woman in the Berkeley hills after he offered the victim a ride, according to court records and authorities.
Besides the forcible rape count, the suspect, Paula Funaki, 24, was also charged with kidnapping to commit a sex crime and forcible oral copulation.
He pleaded not guilty to the charges Wednesday and has a pre-trial hearing set for Dec. 23. He is being held without bail at Santa Rita Jail and was scheduled for arraignment Wednesday.
According to the records and authorities, about 7 p.m. Sunday, Funaki agreed to give the woman a ride in his Cadillac sedan from the downtown area of Berkeley to her husband’s home.
It is not believed at this time that Funaki knew the woman or her husband, authorities said.
But instead of taking her to the husband’s home, Funaki allegedly drove to Wildcat Canyon Road in the Berkeley hills and pulled over east of the 700 block of Woodhaven Road, the records say.
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There, he allegedly threatened to hit the woman before he forced to her to engage in the sex acts in the front passenger seat. After holding her captive for more than an hour, he let the woman go but not before threatening her with physical violence if she told anyone, the records say.
He drove away and the woman was able to seek help from residents in the area.
Police began looking for the suspect and his vehicle. Officers spotted him driving the Cadillac about 8 p.m. in the area of Glen Avenue and Spruce Street, and Funaki was arrested.
The woman was brought to the scene and identified him as her attacker, according to the records. A distinctive shirt he was wearing during the attack was recovered, as was physical evidence linking him to the assault, the records say.
