“Sexual assault is a heinous crime that cannot be tolerated.”
Jun 8, 2023 4:55pm ET
• 3 min reading
A former USC college football player has been charged with raping two women in the past three years, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
The suspect, 22-year-old Joshua Fred James Jackson Jr., was arrested Wednesday and charged with one felony count of violent sexual penetration and three felonies count of violent rape from two separate incidents, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón said a press release on Wednesday.
“Sexual assault is a heinous crime that cannot be tolerated,” Gascón said. “These brave women have made the difficult decision to come forward and report their assault. Now it is our turn to ensure that justice prevails. We will do everything we can to hold the responsible person accountable for their actions.”
Joshua Jackson Jr. of the USC Trojans leaves the field after the spring game at the Los Angeles Coliseum April 17, 2021 in Los Angeles Meg Oliphant/Getty Images, FILE
The arrest came after Jackson Jr. allegedly raped a classmate at her home at the University of Southern California in March this year. The suspect is also accused of raping a UCLA student at his Los Angeles home sometime between June 1 and September 1, 2020, authorities said.
Jackson is now expected to face arraignment before the Foltz Criminal Justice Center this week after the case was filed to obtain a warrant on Tuesday.
He is being held on a $1.4 million bond. It’s unclear if he hired an attorney at the time.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Jackson, a former student athlete standout at Harbor City Narbonne, appeared in three games after enrolling at USC in 2020, but entered the NCAA transfer portal in April before graduating from the university in May. He didn’t play any games last season.
Authorities are asking anyone with information about these cases or other potential victims to contact the Los Angeles Police Department at 323-290-2976 or 877-LAPD-24-7.