Updated: Sept. 8, 8:30 a.m.
PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Testimony began Wednesday in the trial of a man accused of raping a woman last year, after walking into the Center City law office where she worked.
The woman, who was 22 years old at the time of the attack, told the jury that she was in the courtroom to “get justice.” Defendant Willie Harris shook his head as the woman recounted the gruesome details from July 2022.
Prosecutors showed surveillance footage of a man entering the office building during the day, walking through the door and past the security desk, as someone else walked out.
The woman says she was working alone in the office when Harris came to the eighth floor. He allegedly began rummaging through drawers, asked her where the money was, and then became agitated after she tried to offer him earrings, AirPods and a purse.
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That’s when she says the man brutally raped, beat, and strangled her, saying, “Stop screaming or I’m going to kill you.”
A colleague took to the stand saying she was coming back from lunch when she saw the man leaving the office and found her coworker on the floor, frantic and partially dressed, screaming, “Call 911, I was raped.”
The woman says she also filed a civil lawsuit for negligent building security.
The defense, however, said Harris’ DNA was not found on the victim — adding that it was not "an open and shut case." The trial is expected to last through the week.
The case was handed to the jury on Thursday.