Suspected rapist shot and caught in FWay

The Mirror

A man suspected in a series of sexual assaults and home-invasion robberies in Federal Way, Des Moines and Pierce County was captured Tuesday morning after police shot him as he tried to escape from the scene of his latest attacks.

The suspect was shot once after he jumped from the second-floor balcony of an apartment in Federal Way. He was taken to a hospital for treatment of wounds that authorities said weren’t potentially fatal.

According to Federal Way Police officials, a 45-year-old woman and her daughters, 13 and 15, called 9-1-1 at about 5:30 a.m. and said they’d been sexually assaulted by a man who entered their unit at The Heights at West Campus apartment at about 11:30 Monday night. The victims were tied up before being assaulted, but managed to escape and call for help, authorities said.

The victims’ conditions weren’t immediately available, but uthey were taken to a local hospital for medical attention, police said.

After police surrounded the apartment, the suspect appeared on a balcony once, went back inside and then came out a second time. He jumped off and tried to run, but a SWAT team fired two shots, one hitting him in the arm, police said.

The suspect, whose name wasn’t immediately released, was described as a black male. Police said it’s believed the suspect entered the apartment through an unlocked window.

A man with a similar description and in similar circumstances entered three other residences and raped and robbed victims in incidents from Aug. 31 to Oct. 27. Each time, he was armed with a gun, bound people and stayed for several hours, raping all or some of the women in the homes.

Staff writer Mike Halliday contributed to this report.

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