Tattoo Could Help Identify Woman

Ventura County sheriff’s detectives are asking for the public’s help in identifying a potential sexual assault victim captured on videotape.

The woman on the tape has a 2-inch tattoo on her right pelvis of vines intertwined in a circle with a large “S” in the middle, according to sheriff’s authorities. Anyone who may recognize the tattoo is asked to call the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department at 654-2331.

The tape was confiscated from rape suspect Andrew Luster’s Mussel Shoals home during a search on July 18. Luster, 36, faces 40 charges of kidnapping and rape in the alleged sexual assaults of three women. Authorities believe Luster used the date rape drug GHB, or gamma-hydroxybutyrate, to render his alleged victims unconscious before having sex with them. Many of the attacks were photographed or videotaped without the knowledge of the women, investigators said.

Authorities said 50 home videos and dozens of snapshots show as many as 15 additional victims may have been sedated and assaulted.

Luster, the great-grandson of cosmetic giant Max Factor, has pleaded not guilty to all charges and remains in Ventura County Jail on $10-million bail.