A woman who was sexually assaulted at the Denver International Airport (DIA) put the airport on the defensive.

A woman, 22 years old, was on her way to Illinois for an interview at  convent when she missed her connecting flight and was stranded at the DIA Airport.  She was followed and sexually assaulted during her wait.

Noel Alexander Bertrand of Portland, OR, 26 years of age, came before the judge in Denver in connection with the alleged crime.  The judge set bond at $50,000.   According to reports, Bertrand is a former U.S. Marine.

The incident occurred after the woman missed the connection and went to a bar in Concourse A.  After she left the bar, she was allegedly followed by Bertrand who asked if he could kiss her. When the woman refused, Bertrand allegedly forced himself upon her, lifted her off the ground, pounded her head to the floor, pulling down her pants and sexually assaulting her for what the woman believes to be 10 minutes.

The woman says that she was eventually saved by two  airport that saw the assault from outside the terminal.  Prior to being saved, the woman claimed that two other workers passed by without offering any help to her. The airport defended its employees. “To the best of our knowledge, airport employees who witnessed the incident responded immediately by either calling for help or intervening in the situation,” read a statement from the DIA.

The Denver Police Department confirmed that airport employees has contacted the police immediately.

The woman said that when authorities came to arrest Bertrand, “a lover’s quarrel,” is what he described it as.

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Many attorneys do not accept these cases. As a former Assistant U.S Attorney, I have had experience in many cases like this. These are very serious charges and this person needs a very good attorney experienced in Sexual Crimes.