Suspected Serial Casino Rapist Captured in New Mexico

Posted on: April 29, 2025, 07:31h. 

Last updated on: April 29, 2025, 10:37h.

Philip Conneller @casinoorgphilc Read More
Expertise: Gaming Business, Regulation, Tribal Gaming.
  • Josue Macias, 35, arrested for three alleged assaults
  • Victims allegedly kidnapped from Downs Racetrack & Casino
  • License plate readers linked Macias’ vehicle to crime scenes

Authorities in New Mexico have arrested a man they suspect of raping at least three women after picking them up outside the Downs Racetrack & Casino in Albuquerque, according to Albuquerque police.

Josue Macias, Downs Racetrack & Casino, Albuquerque, serial rapist, New Mexico
Police bodycam footage shows the arrest of suspected serial rapist Josue Macias at a hair salon in southwest Albuquerque on Saturday. (Image: APD)

Josue Macias, 35, was taken into custody on Saturday after investigators linked him to a silver Volkswagen Jetta believed to have been used in a string of violent sexual assaults.

Threatened with Weapon

The three known victims each told police they were approached by a man offering rides near the casino entrance. After entering the vehicle, they were driven to secluded alleyways across Albuquerque, where they say they were sexually assaulted.

Two of the victims reported that their attacker threatened them with a knife or box cutter during the assaults, according to court documents.

Investigators say Macias came under suspicion after a license plate reader system identified his car in the area around the casino at the times the assaults were reported. Police tracked the vehicle to a hair salon in southwest Albuquerque, where they confronted Macias and arrested him without incident.

“Josue? Can you step outside real quick,” an officer is quoted as saying in bodycam footage obtained by The Albuquerque Journal. “Don’t reach into your pockets just yet, let’s go outside and talk real quick, okay?”

Rape, Kidnapping Charges

Once in custody, Macias admitted to having sex with the women after picking them up, but claimed the encounters were consensual and he had paid them for sex.

When questioned about why the women accused him of assault, he told police he had used a “razor” to force them out of his car when they allegedly refused to leave.

Macias has been charged with three counts of second-degree criminal sexual penetration, kidnapping, and assault with intent to commit a violent felony. He is currently being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center without bond pending a preliminary hearing.

Authorities believe there may be additional victims who haven’t yet come forward. Albuquerque police have urged anyone who may have been approached by Macias or encountered similar incidents near the Downs Racetrack & Casino to contact the department’s Sex Crimes Unit.