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Sexual assault trial begins for accused Strip shooter Ammar Harris

Posted at 10:37 AM, Sep 12, 2013
and last updated 2015-10-09 18:06:00-04

The man accused of killing three people in February on the Las Vegas Strip was in court today for another case.

27-year-old Ammar Harris is also charged with sexual assault and robbery.

A jury was sworn in yesterday and his trial began today with opening statements.

Harris has pleaded not guilty to the charges. According to prosecutors, Harris forced a woman into sexual acts and stole $600 from her in 2010.

Lawyers for Harris says that the sex was consensual.

According to the victim, Harris is accused of forcing her to perform sex acts in a shower.

The alleged victim and another woman had recently moved into an apartment with Harris.

Charges in the case were originally dropped when the woman moved to Texas. But, the case was resurrected when she came back to Las Vegas and testified before a grand jury in the Strip shooting case.

Harris is currently facing triple murder charges in a case stemming from a shooting and fiery crash that killed three people in February.

During the investigation of the Strip shooting and crash, it was uncovered that Harris was a self-described pimp. Harris posted video of himself with $100 bills and boasted of his lifestyle. However, he has never been convicted of pimping.

Police say that the shooting stemmed from an argument with an aspiring rapper named Kenneth Cherry Jr. in the valet area of a local hotel-casino.

The argument continued as the men drove in separate cars down the Las Vegas Strip. Harris allegedly then shot Cherry, which caused him to crash into a taxi. Two people in the taxi were killed.

Family members of the taxi driver that was killed during the February incident were in court today. The murder trial is currently scheduled to begin in December.

The sexual assult and robbery trial is expected to last several days.

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