Pomona Man Pleads Not Guilty in Rapes

POMONA — A 26-year-old man pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges that he raped and robbed two women last year, one as she worked at a church and another as she walked down the street, according to the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office.

Anthony Rios Sanchez, 26, of Pomona, is being held in lieu of $10 million bail until his preliminary hearing May 10 in Pomona Superior Court, authorities said.

Sanchez was charged with three counts of forcible rape, two counts of robbery, one count of kidnapping and one count of burglary.

He allegedly raped one woman at First Baptist Church in Pomona as she was working on care packages to be sent to Mexico. He allegedly raped another woman after dragging her from a secluded Pomona street, a district attorney spokesman said.