Man accused of locking a woman in a cell in Oregon faces rape, kidnapping charges in separate case
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This article was published 30/09/2023 (782 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — A man accused of abducting a woman in Seattle, driving her hundreds of miles to his home in Oregon and locking her in a makeshift cinder block cell is facing fresh charges of kidnapping and rape in a separate case involving alleged crimes two months earlier, court documents show.
An indictment returned by a grand jury in southern Oregon’s Klamath County says that on or around May 6, Negasi Zuberi kidnapped a victim referred to as an unidentified Jane Doe in the county in order to rape her. The indictment also alleges that he knowingly injured the victim by using or threatening to use weapons including a handgun and a stun gun.
Zuberi was indicted on 11 counts, including first-degree rape, sexual abuse and kidnapping. The indictment was filed with the Klamath County Circuit Court last week.
Online court records didn’t appear to list a defense attorney for Zuberi for the case, which is in the state court system. There was no immediate response Saturday afternoon to an email and voicemail left with the defense attorney assigned to the other case, which is in federal court, asking whether he was also representing Zuberi in the new case.
Zuberi already faces charges of interstate kidnapping and transporting an individual across state lines with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, related to the incident that led to his arrest in July. Zuberi has pleaded not guilty to those charges.
Prosecutors in the federal case say he solicited a woman on July 15 to engage in prostitution along Aurora Avenue in Seattle, an area known for sex work.
Afterward, Zuberi told the woman he was an undercover officer, showed her a badge, pointed a stun gun at her and placed her in handcuffs and leg irons before putting her in the back of his vehicle, the criminal complaint says.
He then drove to his home in Klamath Falls and locked her in the cinder block cell, the FBI said.
The woman managed to break some of the door’s welded joints, creating a small opening that she climbed through, according to authorities.
After she escaped and flagged down a motorist, police went to the house and found handwritten notes with plans for an apparent dungeon 100 feet (30 meters) below ground, authorities said.
Zuberi fled and was arrested by state police in Reno, Nevada, on July 16, the FBI said.
The FBI said it was looking for additional victims after linking him to violent sexual assaults in other states.
The federal case is set to go to trial later this year.