Fresno County Sheriff’s deputies have arrested Yair Flores, 24, of Parlier.
He has been booked into the Fresno County Jail and faces felony charges of kidnapping and rape.
It’s important to note that through the course of interviews with the suspect and victim, detectives have determined the victim was targeted and this crime was not a random act, contrary to the original report.
On Wednesday at around 6:30 pm, a 21 year old woman was walking along McKinley Ave. in Fresno, near West Ave. Flores drove beside her in his pickup truck and pointed a handgun at her, demanding she get in the vehicle. The woman got inside and the suspect drove her approximately four miles away to an orchard on Blythe Ave., just south of Belmont Ave. The suspect parked in the orchard and then sexually assaulted the woman while inside the pickup. The suspect then told the victim to get out of the vehicle and he drove away.
The woman walked a short distance north on Blythe Ave. to a packing shed. She found an employee at the facility, explained what had happened to her and the employee called the Sheriff’s Office to make a report shortly before 7:00 pm.
Deputies arrived and contacted the victim. She was interviewed and then transported to the hospital for a medical evaluation.
Members of the FSO Crime Scene Unit also responded to collect evidence. Meanwhile, deputies and detectives continued to follow leads late into the night and into the early morning hours. They developed information that the suspect’s vehicle was at a home in Selma near the intersection of E. Nebraska Ave. and S. Academy Ave. Deputies responded and did find a 2006 silver 4-door Dodge pickup, but Flores was not with the truck. From there, deputies learned Flores might be at an apartment complex in Parlier located on the southeast corner of E. Manning Ave. and S. Mendocino Ave. Once they traveled to the apartments, a deputy contacted Flores and arrested him without incident. During the course of the investigation, deputies also recovered a handgun believed to be used in the crime.
Anyone with additional information on Yair Flores is asked to please contact the Sheriff’s Office dispatch at (559) 600-3111 or Crime Stoppers at (559) 498-STOP (7867). All tips will remain anonymous and you may be eligible for a cash reward.
