TEMPE, AZ — Records show an accused serial rapist cut off his ankle monitor and left it in a Tempe alley then fled to Texas.
Alex Bangash, 23, was arrested in a rural Texas county last week after a joint operation with Tempe police and the U.S. Marshals.
Tempe police say that there are five alleged victims, one of whom was a minor at the time of the assault.
Bangash was first arrested in September 2023, but after investigating the case, authorities found cases that date back to 2018. He has pleaded not guilty.
He faces numerous charges, including sexual assault, kidnapping and aggravated assault (strangulation).
Court documents show multiple alleged accounts of violent sexual encounters with victims he typically met on social media accounts.
In a July 2023 case, court records allege that Bangash invited an alleged victim to his Tempe home to go on a motorcycle ride and when he returned he allegedly choked and assaulted her.
Court documents claim Bangash told one of the alleged five victims, “I love you, I’m going to kill you, I’m going to kill for you.”
Tempe Police Commander John Giltinan said the detective on the case was able to connect other victims through a thorough investigation.
“Alex Bangash is a disturbed individual,” he said, “He is accused of and arrested for multiple forcible sexual assaults and other crimes of violence.”
Bangash had a large following on one of his social media accounts. Sources confirmed one account to the ABC15 Investigators that shows videos of him riding on a motorcycle while wearing a mask with over four million “likes” on his page.
The court documents went on to state, “Alex presents a danger to the community if released. He has exhibited extremely violent behavior towards victims that he is a stranger to and that he met online.”
The alleged victims told police they feared him, “Alex’s level of violence appears to be escalating as he has gotten to the point of strangling his most recent victim to the point of losing consciousness during the sexual assault.”
Giltinan said there could be more victims out there.
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“I believe that there certainly could be. I believe that Alex Bangash is bent in a way that would make the likelihood that he would re-offend in an intimate partner relationship very high.”
In a news release, the Tempe Police Department said Bangash was considered non-bondable after his 2023 arrest because of the violent nature of his offenses.
At a February 2024 hearing, a prosecutor with the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office explained how serious the crimes were.
“He strangled them. He's threatened to kill them. These victims, based upon the defendant's actions, made these victims so scared they didn't want to come forward.”
The prosecutor went on to request that he remain in custody.
“I think at this point there is no other reasonable alternative and release condition for this particular defendant, because there is a way that we can try to stop this behavior, and that is right now, keeping him in custody and keeping these victims safe and the rest of the community."
At that 2024 hearing, the court ordered a $250,000 cash bond, along with a $75,000 cash bond because of another case with charges.
The judge told Bangash at the end of that hearing, “Stay out of trouble.” He said, “Take this one seriously. I know it's paper, just like the order of protection, but it comes with some teeth that bite awfully hard.”
Bangash was given a GPS ankle monitor and placed on home detention, per his release conditions. He was also ordered to not date women during the remainder of his case, surrender his passport, not to contact any alleged victims, or use the internet.
On March 10, authorities say Bangash cut off his ankle monitor and fled his home.
Court documents say the ankle monitor was found in a nearby alley of his home.
Weeks later, authorities found Bangash in a rural county in Texas.
ABC15 asked Commander Giltinan if there is any indication that he harmed anyone since he fled, “No, there's no current indication,” he said, “Although we do have detectives proactively reaching out to the jurisdictions which he traveled through to ensure they don't have any M.O. cases.”
Brooke Fulton, with the Arizona Coalition to End Sexual and Domestic Violence, says there are a lot of questions around this case.
“It is, I think, a system failure that he was able to not only bond out… but the fact that he was able to cut off the ankle monitor and go undetected across state lines,” she said, “It is absolutely unacceptable.”
Fulton also fears there are likely more victims out there.
Giltinan said if there are other victims, to please come forward.
“We stand by, ready to help. We were very invested in bringing justice to the survivors that we worked with through this entire process, and we will be just as invested in bringing you justice if you are a victim of Alex Bangash.”
IF YOU HAVE A TIP: email Investigator Nicole Grigg at nicole.grigg@abc15.com
