FBI agent charged with rape and sexual assault 2 years after D.C. Metro shooting acquittal

An FBI special agent is facing charges of raping and assaulting two women in Maryland, according to Montgomery County police; Two years after a state jury acquitted him after he shot and wounded a passenger on a subway train in the Washington, D.C., area.

Eduardo Valdivia, 40, faces 10 felony and misdemeanor charges, including second-degree rape and second-degree assault, for actions that began in February, Deputy Police Chief Nicholas Augustine said at a news conference Tuesday morning.

Augustine said Valdivia contacted the victims — two women in their 20s — through an Instagram page using a different name and invited them to a tattoo parlor, where he offered to get them tattoos and help them get modeling deals. He added that the women did not know that Valdivia was an FBI agent.

Valdivia was arrested on sexual assault charges Monday, defense attorney Robert Bonsib confirmed to The Associated Press.

Bonsib, who declined CNN’s request for comment on Tuesday morning, said: “We do not accept any of the allegations at face value until all the evidence is revealed.”

Valdivia remains in custody without bail following a bail hearing on Tuesday, where the judge said he was a danger to the community and a flight risk. Court records show Valdivia’s next court date is Dec. 20 in Montgomery County.

The charges come almost two years later Maryland Jury It found Valdivia not guilty of attempted murder and other related charges after he shot and wounded a passenger on a Metro train in the Washington, D.C., area in December 2020.

According to police, in the latest incident, Valdivia met one of the victims at a tattoo studio in Gaithersburg, where he lived. Police said Valdivia rented the space where the tattoo shop was located and did not have any tattoo licenses registered at the location.

“One of the women was offered a free tattoo in exchange for modeling the artwork,” Augustine said.

“After the tattoo was completed, Valdivia offered to help the victim find work as a model,” Augustine said.

According to Augustine, the woman later received an email offering her the opportunity to do a test photo shoot and returned to the tattoo studio on a different date. Augustine said she was offered a modeling contract during the photo shoot and was then sexually assaulted by Valdivia.

“The victim was put under pressure and threatened with legal action if he did not return to comply with the contract,” he said. Concerned about possible legal consequences, the woman agreed to meet Valdivia again two weeks later for a modeling shoot at a local hotel, where she was sexually assaulted a second time.

The second victim met Valdivia in a similar manner, Augustine said. He added that the woman received a tattoo from Valdivia before being offered a photo opportunity and a contract signing.

“During this photo shoot, this victim was sexually assaulted,” Augustine said.

“Detectives from the Special Victims Investigation Section believe there may be additional victims,” police said in a statement this week.

Augustine said it is unclear whether Valdivia was working as an FBI agent at the time of these alleged crimes. However, the incidents occurred late at night on weekdays and during weekend hours.

The women are both 21 and voluntarily agreed to go to Valdivia’s tattoo shop, Bonsib said, describing the visits as “consensual” during the bail hearing.

A spokesperson for the bureau’s Washington field office told CNN that Valdivia has been suspended from the FBI pending the police investigation. Valdivia has been with the FBI since 2011, Bonsib said Tuesday.

“The FBI takes allegations of criminal violations and misconduct very seriously,” the field office said in a statement. “We are aware of the matter regarding the recent arrest of an FBI employee and are cooperating fully with the Montgomery County Police Department.

The FBI declined to comment further on the incident.

In the 2020 incident, Valdivia allegedly got into a verbal argument with a man on the Red Line train and shot him while he was on his way to work. Bonsib argued it was self-defense and Valdivia was acquitted of all charges.

with investigators Metro Transit Police He said video footage of the incident showed an adult male approaching Valdivia as the Metrorail car approached the Medical Center Station in Bethesda, Maryland. Metro Transit Police said there were exchanges of words and Valdivia fired his gun several times.

Prosecutors told the court that the other passenger asked Valdivia for money and when Valdivia said he had no money, the man walked away, spewing profanities. Valdivia told the man to watch his mouth. Prosecutors said the FBI agent’s reaction caused the other passenger to turn around and strike Valdivia in the face before two shots were fired.

CNN’s Josh Campbell contributed to this report.

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