San Diego

San Diego police have asked for the help of Mexican authorities in apprehending three border bandits who raped a 16-year-old girl and committed two armed robberies on Friday.

Police spokesman Bill Robinson said the rape victim and the victims of a later robbery identified three suspects, all Tijuana residents, from photographs. The police are seeking assistance from the State Judicial Police, the spokesman said.

Five bandits were involved in two incidents, Robinson said. He said that, about 12:30 a.m., the 16-year-old girl and her 17-year-old husband, both entering the United States illegally through a canyon, were surrounded by five men, four armed with knives and one with a handgun. They robbed the couple of $50.

Robinson said one bandit was raping the girl when a Border Patrol helicopter arrived, prompting the bandits to flee. Border agents took custody of the victims, and the girl was taken to Children’s Hospital for treatment.

Later, three men and a woman from Guanajuato state who had also illegally entered the United States were robbed of about $800 and 3,500 pesos, apparently by the same bandits, Robinson said.