A 35-year-old Franklin man, Benjamin Donaldson, has been charged with multiple felonies including rape and sexual assault after a girl under 16 reported being assaulted at his apartment in late June. According to the criminal complaint, the victim went to Donaldson’s residence on 11th Street in the early morning hours of June 30 after he texted her, where he allegedly assaulted her twice despite her repeated requests for him to stop. The charges were supported by surveillance footage from the location, DNA evidence processed by the State Police Lab that matched Donaldson to the sexual assault kit, and text message records between the two. Donaldson was arraigned Tuesday, is being held on $150,000 bail at Venango County jail, and faces numerous felony and misdemeanor charges with a preliminary hearing scheduled for Wednesday.
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