WHITE CENTER, Wash. — A 34-year-old Tukwila man was arrested Wednesday after deputies said he posed as a ride-share driver and raped a woman.
Another woman who saw the story on KIRO 7 told deputies on Wednesday about an August incident where she said the man drove her home from a Ballard bar and then tried to get inside.
The woman told deputies the man tried to push his way throught her front door after he rang the doorbell, claiming she had left her cellphone in his vehicle.
The woman spoke with detectives and picked the 34-year-old man out of a police photo lineup on Wednesday.
The King County Sheriff's Office is also investigating whether the same man is responsible for a third incident described in a Reddit post in which a woman claims a man matching the 34-year-old's description tried to driver her home from a Fremont bar, but she declined.
@kingcosoPIO : fake rideshare rape suspect arrested yesterday has been ID’d by another alleged victim in similar case from Aug ‘18 — after she saw his image on @KIRO7Seattle Tuesday. pic.twitter.com/IOBFhyFGKT
— AMY CLANCY (@ClancyKIRO7) April 4, 2019
A family member of the suspect recognized the man on Wednesday and a short time later deputies said he turned himself in for the first case.
On Thursday night, the suspect's wife spoke with KIRO 7's Gary Horcher. Since the suspect has not been charged, KIRO 7 did not name the suspect or his wife.
"Feeling that my husband is being accused of other things such as rape hurts me because I know that's not true," she said.
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“Upon further investigation, the suspect was arrested today at his attorney’s office and booked into the King County Jail for investigation of rape,” deputies said in a news release.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, the woman who was raped in White Center was previously at a bar in the 5100 block of Ballard Avenue Northwest. About 12:15 a.m. on Dec. 16, 2018, the woman went outside to catch the ride-share that a friend ordered for her to get home.
Deputies said the suspect led her to believe he was her ride-share driver, but investigators confirmed to KIRO 7 the man is not a ride-share driver.
“The victim entered the vehicle. While driving her home, the victim states the man pulled the vehicle over and raped her near 11400 block of 5th Ave S in White Center,” the Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.
KIRO 7 will continue to update this story as more information becomes available.
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