A 27-year-old Lakewood man accused of breaking into his ex-girlfriend's Lacey apartment and raping her at gunpoint in May apparently violated a protection order Friday by following the woman on state Route 512 in Pierce County.
After the ex-girlfriend called 911 Friday afternoon to report she was being followed by a black BMW, a Washington State Patrol trooper pulled the vehicle over. The driver was identified as Aaron Johnson, 27, who had been arrested in mid-May on suspicion of raping the 26-year-old woman who had reported being followed.
On Monday, troopers executed a search warrant for the black BMW, and found, "a woman's wig, some oversized sunglasses, a pair of black gloves and a roll of duct tape," a news release states. Johnson was rearrested on Friday for violating the protection order that required him to stay away from the woman.
"This is an ongoing investigation and only Johnson knows what his plans were, but one thing is for sure, this young lady is safe and sound with him behind bars," WSP's news release states.
Washington State Patrol Trooper Guy Gill said the woman broke down after being told what was found in Johnson’s BMW. “People don’t carry that around in their cars,” Gill said. “Do I think he had bad intentions? Absolutely.”
After the alleged rape at the woman's College Street apartment on May 14, prosecutors charged Johnson with first-degree burglary while armed with a deadly weapon, first-degree rape, first-degree kidnapping while armed with a deadly weapon and felony harassment.
During the alleged May 14 rape, the victim said Johnson had a handgun and a black backpack, court papers state. When Lacey police arrested Johnson at his Lakewood home the night of May 14, they found a black backpack similar to the one she described, according to court papers. It contained "a handsaw, duct tape, a shovel, zip ties, a large hunting knife, black leather gloves, a black stocking hat and gloves," court papers state.
According to court papers, the woman had broken up with Johnson after a two-year relationship, and since then, he'd been calling and texting her so frequently that she had to change her phone number. She told police that as she was leaving for work on May 14, he was waiting for her outside the door, and he "immediately placed his hand over her mouth and shoved her back into the apartment," court papers state.
He then displayed a handgun, threatened to kill her and raped her, court papers state. After Johnson's initial arrest in May, Lacey Police Cmdr. Jim Mack said, "this was a very dangerous situation. She handled herself very well. She did what she had to do to survive this situation."
Johnson was released from the Thurston County Jail on May 25, after posting $50,000 bail. As a condition of his release from custody, Johnson signed an order that he would stay away from the woman.
According to the WSP:
During Friday's incident on state Route 512, the woman called 911 from her car to report that she was being followed near the Puyallup fairgrounds. She reported that she was afraid to pull over, and that when she attempted to change lanes, the black BMW would also.
A trooper started following the BMW on state Route 410 near the Sumner Buckley Highway, and when the BMW noticed the trooper, its driver "made an erratic left turn into a grocery store parking lot." The trooper initiated a traffic stop. The driver said he was going to meet a friend at a restaurant, but could not give the trooper a name.
Johnson was booked into the Pierce County Jail on suspicion of violating his protection order.
Johnson has told court officials he was discharged from the Army in 2007. Since then, he said he has worked as a government contractor but he is currently unemployed.
Jeremy Pawloski: 360-754-5445
jpawloski@theolympian.com
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