An Oklahoma man has been arrested in Lafayette for allegedly breaking into a woman’s home and sexually assaulting her then demanding she drive him to an ATM.

Cpl. Karl Ratcliff with the Lafayette Police Department says they were able to catch 22-year-old Devon Bell after a dispatcher remembered a recent call about a suspicious person in the neighborhood.

“The detectives followed up on that lead and made contact with that individual. During the course of that investigation they were able to identify him as the suspect in this home invasion and sexual assault.”

Bell is charged with home invasion, sexual battery, aggravated kidnapping, and criminal trespassing. Ratcliff says this case is also now considered a kidnapping. He says detectives were able to receive surveillance video showing that Bell was in fact the suspect they were looking for.

“Less than 24 hours after the case was solved we had an arrest made. Outstanding work on behalf of our detectives and our dispatchers. Obviously a very traumatic incident, something we’re not used to dealing with here.”

Ratcliff says this was a very scary experience for the victim and she called authorities to report the incident after she was away from Bell and felt safe. He says Bell has only been in the area for a few days and police are not looking for other suspects.

“He’s from Oklahoma, he is not from the area. He actually just moved into the area just days prior, not a native of Louisiana or this area. He was actually staying with relatives here.”

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