Suspect convicted in violent 2013 Telegraph Hill burglary/sexual assault
SAN FRANCISCO -- A San Francisco jury has convicted Jovan Jones of several counts stemming from the violent sexual assault and robbery of a woman in her Telegraph Hill apartment in 2013.
District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said Jones now faces a minimum sentence of 25 years to life in state prison at his sentencing on February 28th.
Jones was found guilty of burglary with intent to commit a sexual assault, attempted sexual penetration with a foreign object, sexual penetration with a foreign object, attempted rape, rape and first-degree robbery.
The jury also found him guilty of an enhancement of using a deadly weapon in the commission of these crimes.
"Jovan Jones' conviction for these horrific crimes is due in large part to the bravery and resilience of the survivor," Jenkins said in a news release. "My office met her courage with equal resolve to fight for justice in this case and send a message that unspeakable violence will not be tolerated."
The conviction came in a case that began on January 12, 2013.
Prosecutors said Jones assaulted the victim as she was at her door and pushed himself into her apartment in Telegraph Hill where he proceeded to sexually assault and rape her.
At the time of the assault, the victim was on the phone with her mother who heard her scream before the call was dropped.
The victim's mother, who was in Washington State at the time, called police and requested a welfare check for her daughter.
Jones was apprehended by members of the San Francisco police with the assistance of the California Highway Patrol.
Officers chased the defendant out of the victim's apartment complex and through the Telegraph Hill neighborhood. He was spotted in the wooded area of the neighborhood by a CHP helicopter and arrested after a one-hour search.