Student reports rape at Cape County park
A 17-year-old student from the Cape Girardeau Career and Technology Center reported to police that she was raped by a fellow student while helping decorate a Christmas display at Cape County Park North. The student told officers that she and a 17-year-old male student met each other near the restrooms "and there was an incident of sexual contact," said Sgt. Barry Hovis of the Cape Girardeau Police Department. The girl told a teacher she had been raped after the group of students working on the decorations left the park, Hovis said. The incident is under investigation by detectives who are checking both students' stories and interviewing other potential witnesses, he said. "There are differing statements about what occurred," Hovis said. When the investigation is complete, the case will be referred to the Cape Girardeau County prosecuting attorney's office for possible charges, he said.