LOS ANGELES — Fashion designer Anand Jon Alexander sexually assaulted aspiring models after luring them to Los Angeles with promises of glamorous photo shoots and stays in a luxury hotel, a prosecutor said today during closing arguments in his trial.
Deputy District Attorney Mara McIlvain told jurors that Alexander had a “common plan” that started with finding the women on the Internet and ended with him fondling or raping them in his apartment when they visited California seeking modeling opportunities.
In one instance, he is accused of videotaping a 17-year-old girl as she disrobed at his urging and then touching her inappropriately as she bent over. McIlvain suggested Alexander then kept the tape as a souvenir.
The 34-year-old designer faces 25 counts including forcible rape and committing lewd acts on a child between 2001 and 2007. The nine alleged victims were ages 14 to 21.
Alexander has pleaded not guilty to the charges. His defense attorneys are expected to present their closing argument later in the day.
Most of the prosecution’s case relies on testimony from women who made the accusations against Alexander.
Alexander also is under indictment in New York on similar charges involving nine women. He is under investigation by authorities in Texas and Massachusetts.
Once considered an up-and-coming designer, Alexander appeared on TV’s “America’s Next Top Model” in 2003 and was profiled by Newsweek. He has worked with celebrities including Paris Hilton and Mary J. Blige.
The fashion designer, born in India, graduated from the Parsons School of Design in New York and launched a fashion line in 1999.
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