Man denies charges of rape, theft

CITY CENTER — The 45-year-old man accused of raping an unconscious 24-year-old man in his Burbank apartment pleaded not guilty Monday to felony charges of sodomy and oral copulation of an unconscious individual and grand theft of personal property.

Richard Scott Poland, of Burbank, remains in jail in lieu of $100,000 bail. A preliminary court hearing is scheduled for Oct. 27.

Poland was arrested Thursday on the 200 block of East Magnolia Boulevard, four days after his tryst with a 24-year-old resident began at Sardo’s Grille and Lounge on North Pass Avenue, police said.

The pair walked to the alleged victim’s apartment on the 4300 block of Sarah Street.

Detectives said the victim, barely conscious, uploaded footage of the rape onto Stickam.com, a live streaming social network, in an effort to document his attack.

The victim told police he awoke Sept. 20 feeling woozy and hung-over. He later checked a message from a friend in Switzerland who found the online video. The alleged victim then called police to report being drugged and raped. Police said his computer was also missing.

?CHRISTOPHER CADELAGO covers City Hall and the courts. He may be reached at (818) 637-3242 or by e-mail at christopher.cadelago@ latimes.com.