Westminster man gets 20-year sentence for armed rape of Baltimore woman

Carroll County Circuit Judge Maria Oesterreicher sentenced Malcolm Wade, 34, of Westminster, to 20 years in prison on Wednesday for the rape of a Baltimore woman last year.

Wade, who was being held without bail at the Carroll County Detention Center, pleaded guilty April 24 to second-degree rape and false imprisonment, according to a Thursday news release from the Carroll County State’s Attorney’s Office.

The news release stated that the Westminster Police Department received information on Aug. 15 that a woman who had been raped in Westminster was being treated at a hospital in Baltimore.

Investigators said that Wade forced the woman into a car at knifepoint and made her drive him to his home in the 400 block of Baldwin Park Drive, near the Carroll County Farm Museum, in Westminster. At his home, he brought out a rifle and told her that she, “will meet God tonight,” the news release stated.

The vehicle used in the crime belongs to the U.S. Department of Agriculture and was issued to Wade through his job, State’s Attorney Haven Shoemaker said. A warranted search of the vehicle later yielded a loaded Hanover Arms HA-15 rifle, which is similar to an AR-15.

According to court documents, Wade asked the victim if she wanted to play a “let’s tell the truth” game, and she agreed to play out of fear. But when Wade became upset with the victim’s answers, he told her to strip naked. When the victim told Wade she did not want to have sex with him, he pointed a gun at his head and threatened to kill himself. The victim told police she complied out of fear that he would kill them both, according to a police report. Following the rape, Wade told the victim to drive them both to her apartment in Baltimore and made her promise to not notify the police, according to police.

“It was horrific,what happened to the victim in this case,” Shoemaker said.

A former co-worker of the victim, who became suspicious when the victim failed to answer several phone calls, arrived at her apartment to ensure she was OK, , according to the police report, and deduced that the victim wanted Wade to leave her apartment. The duo attempted to leave together after Wade said he would not leave and also blocked their escape, but they pushed past him and called the police, police said.

Shoemaker declined to comment about whether Wade and the victim knew each other to help protect the victim’s identity.

The defendant received a 50-year sentence, with all but 20 years suspended, Shoemaker said. After Wade finishes his 20-year sentence, he must serve five years of supervised probation and will be required to register as a sex offender for life.

“I think that the sentence that Judge Oesterreicher fashioned in this particular case certainly is warranted by the facts,” Shoemaker said. “I hope that the victim understands and feels that her concerns were addressed by my office, and that justice was meted out fairly.”