Woman allegedly sexually abused and beaten by convicted rapist in Detroit

DETROIT (FOX 2) – ***WARNING: THE ABUSE DETAILED IN THIS STORY MAY BE GRAPHIC.***

A Detroit woman said she was raped, brutally beaten and tied up last Thursday by a man she has known for a long time. She barely survived the attack.

The suspect is 35-year-old Mikel Lauderdale, a convicted rapist who was charged in 2007. After allegedly attacking the woman, whom FOX 2 is calling Tiffani for anonymity, he stole her car and all of her television sets.

“In my head I knew I would never see my children again, so I resigned myself to the fact that I was just going to give up because he was stronger than me and he had me in a full-blown headlock and I couldn’t breathe,” she said. “Everything was empty. I thought I had died.”

The attack took place in Tiffany’s living room on Detroit’s west side. She said the man who put his hands around her throat and pulled out a knife was a friend who was like a brother to her.

“I grew up with him. I’ve known him since I was 14,” Tiffani said. “When he first came here, he was the normal person I knew. And then something was different. It was like he just went crazy.”

Lauderdale cornered her in a bedroom.

“He started to take off my pants. With the knife he had, he ripped the bat off me,” the victim said.

Then he allegedly raped her. When it was over, according to Tiffani, he began to pace up and down her bruised and beaten body.

“He was pacing back and forth trying to figure out if he wanted to kill me or not,” she told FOX 2.

She persuaded him not to do it. Instead, he tied her up and left her in the basement.

“He said the only reason I let you breathe is because I love you,” Tiffani said.

Lauderdale fled the scene while Tiffany freed herself from the restraints to call for help.

Detroit police were able to locate their vehicle. When they attempted to stop the suspect, he did not stop and police began a chase.

He eventually abandoned the vehicle in Melvindale and tried to hide, but video from a Michigan State Police helicopter showed Lauderdale running away from police officers.

Lauderdale was caught by police and arrested for rape, kidnapping and assault. He was remanded in custody; bail was not even an option.

“It gives me a different perspective on people. I just don’t trust anyone,” Tiffani said.