St. Paul man charged with sexual assault, suspected of others

Prosecutors say a St. Paul man who they charged this week with sexual assault is the subject of several other similar reports.

The Ramsey County Attorney’s Office charged 48-year-old John Henry McCaster with first- and third-degree criminal sexual conduct, as well as two counts of theft on Thursday for an offense on New Year’s Eve.

Charging documents state the victim had gone over to McCaster’s home between midnight at 1:30 a.m. on Dec. 31 after they’d been chatting on the dating app Grindr. McCaster allegedly put a gun on a table next to a large knife, then gave the victim a blue drink the victim thought was Gatorade and told police the next thing he knew he woke up naked and tied up at 8 a.m. Additionally, his backpack, clothes, license, debit card and vehicle were all gone.

The victim said he knew he’d likely been sexually assaulted but initially blamed himself and felt too traumatized to do a rape kit, adding he did go to urgent care but left after waiting for a couple of hours because he “couldn’t bear it anymore,” a criminal complaint states.

McCaster was arrested for illegal gun possession later the same night and remains in custody in Hennepin County. The victim’s license and debit card were found on him when he was booked into jail, and also had the backpack and clothing the victim had reported missing.

The victim told police in follow-up interviews his phone was still missing and his passwords, including for his email address, were changed. The complaint adds the victim spoke to the owner of the home where McCaster was, and the owner told the victim that McCaster had done something similar to another person earlier in the week.

The homeowner later talked to police and said he was trying to evict McCaster because he played “super loud” music and believed he used GHB, which acts like a date rape drug.

McCaster denied assaulting or stealing from people but said he and the victim had consensual sex that night.

Court documents note that McCaster has an extensive criminal history, including for battery, larceny, domestic assault and drug crimes, and he’s the subject of police reports involving several other sexual assaults that are similar to the victim’s.