A Massachusetts woman says she had just dropped her son off at school when her ex-boyfriend ambushed her in her Lowell apartment.
The woman was held against her will and raped Monday; her downstairs neighbor, Heng Tan, was found dead.
Police say the woman's ex-boyfriend, Hoeup Honn, had broken the mirrors on her car. She asked Tan to help fix them.
When she went inside her apartment Monday, Honn was allegedly hiding behind it.
The woman spoke about the case, but NBC10 Boston is declining to reveal her name or show her face.
"When I opened the door, he grabbed me already," the woman said.
She said Honn led her to a back room and tied her to a chair, holding her captive for hours.
"I'm thinking, 'I'm in danger.' But I'm thinking, 'I'll just do what he tells me to do,'" she said.
Prosecutors said in court that Honn said to investigators, "Did I rape her? If that's what you want to call it."
She tried to escape several times. It was only when Honn fell asleep that she was able to run out and call for help.
When police arrived, they found Tan dead.
Authorities said Honn choked Tan until his body was lifeless. He has not been charged with murder, but authorities said that could soon change.
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"Very loving man and a very kind-hearted person," Tan's son said. "He never deserved anything like this."
Tan was a regular at the auto body shops on Payne Street, giving advice to young mechanics.
"I just feel sorry for him, you know? I never thought this would happen like this," the female victim said.
Honn is being held without bail and is due back in court the end of September. His court-appointed attorney declined comment.
