2 charged in alleged rape in St. Cloud State University dorm room

Two men are wanted for their alleged roles in a sexual assault last year in a St. Cloud State University dorm room, court documents show.

According to warrants filed in Stearns County District Court last week, 20-year-old Dipak Phayal and 19-year-old Sujan Tamang are charged in connection with the assault.

The defendants are accused of following the victim into her dorm sometime between 2 and 3 a.m. on Nov. 1 and closing the door behind them. One assailant restrained her while the other kissed and touched her against her will, despite pleas for them to stop, a criminal complaint states.

At one point, one of the men left the room while the other raped the victim. She forced him off of her, and the other man came back inside the room. In an interview with police, the victim said she believed the other man was waiting outside the door. The pair finally left after the victim pleaded for them to leave.

Later that morning, the victim received an Instagram message request from Phayal asking, “How are you feeling right now? Are you well?” According to the complaint, the victim noted that Phayal’s profile picture resembled one of the attackers.

Dorm surveillance footage from the night of the attack allegedly shows Phayal and Tamang in the lobby around the time the victim arrived at the building. About 10 minutes later, they reappear wearing each other’s clothes.

When questioned, Phayal and Tamang gave inconsistent accounts of the events of that night.

Phayal at first said he saw the victim stumbling in the hallway and helped her to her room and denied having any sexual contact with her. He later said she had initiated sex but he declined, the complaint states. Tamang denied seeing Phuyal go into the victim’s room or being told anything about it but later said Phuyal told him he had engaged in “consensual touching” with her.

When asked about swapping clothes, Phayal said they wanted to see how Tamang’s sweatshirt fit on him. Tamang, however, said he took the sweatshirt off because he got hot while taking a nap.

DNA samples taken during a sexual assault examination found matches with Phayal’s genetic material around the victim’s genitals; a DNA profile that matched with Tamang was found on the victim’s shoulder, court documents allege.

Phuyal is charged with counts of aiding and abetting first-degree criminal sexual contact and first- and third-degree criminal sexual contact. Tamang faces two counts of aiding and abetting first-degree criminal sexual conduct and one count of aiding and abetting fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct.

Neither suspect is in custody, and charging documents say it’s likely both have fled the state.