A Southern California man is accused of drugging and sexually assaulting nine women — including one who died, prosecutors said.
Michael DiGiorgio, 50, was charged Friday with murder, three counts of aggravated rape by use of a drug and delivery of a controlled substance, two counts of aggravated sodomy by use of a drug, five counts of aggravated sexual penetration by use of a drug and other crimes, NBC News reported.
He was arrested Thursday by Redondo Beach police and remains in jail without bond, authorities said.
DiGiorgio was scheduled to be arraigned Friday and enter a plea, but that hearing was continued until Nov. 6, It was reported by CNN.
He is accused of drugging and sexually assaulting his victims at his Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach homes between May 2019 and November 2021, prosecutors said. Investigators said they believe more victims may come forward.
Authorities declined to name the woman who died or say when she died, but court records show the murder charge is related to a July 2020 crime.
“I express my deepest sympathies to the victims, whose lives have been irrevocably changed and whose lives have been lost by the alleged brutal actions of the perpetrator,” said Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón.
“Our office is determined to hold him accountable for the pain and trauma he has caused.”
DiGiorgio faces a maximum sentence of life in prison, the DA’s office said.
He was previously charged in 2020 with rape of a person “unconscious or asleep” and other crimes, but the case was dismissed for lack of a speedy trial, CNN reported.
DiGiorgio pleaded not guilty to those charges.