Man Charged in Alleged Attempted Date Rape Appears in Court

A 24-year-old man who allegedly tried to slip a drug into a woman's drink before he was thwarted by three Good Samaritans appeared in a Los Angeles court today after he was charged with two felonies, authorities said.

Michael Roe Chien Hsu was arraigned on charges of felony administering a drug and felony assault with intent to commit a sex crime, according to Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney Oksana Sigal.

Hsu pleaded not guilty to the charges and was issued a protective order against the alleged victim by the judge. He must also turn over his passport within 48 hours and was required to turn in his pilot license.

His bail was originally set at $1 million, but it was reduced to $350,000 in court. It is unclear if he has a lawyer.

The case gained national attention after three friends at a Santa Monica hotel said they noticed a man acting "pretty suspicious" after his female companion at a nearby table left to go to the restroom Thursday during happy hour.

"I thought he was trying to lace her drink," Monica Kenyon told ABC News. "He for sure dropped something into her drink."

One of the women then went to the restroom to alert the woman, who replied that he was one of her "best friends," according to Kenyon.

When another woman alerted the restaurant's staff, the manager called police after reviewing the restaurant's security footage.

In a Facebook post, Sonia Ulrich wrote a detailed account of the alleged events, accompanied by a photo of the three women in a Charlie's Angel pose with the caption: "Don't roofie someone on our watch." "Roofie" is slang for a sedative associated with date rape. The post has been shared more than 115,000 times.

Ulrich wrote that after the incident, restaurant patrons continued to approach their table to share their gratitude and tell stories about people close to them who have been date-raped.

"I really wanted people to know that if they say something, it can make a difference," Ulrich wrote.