Man accused of raping teen after she got off a bus and was walking home in Tacoma
A man accused of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl after he saw her get off a bus in Tacoma was in court Monday.
The 36-year-old pleaded not guilty to first-degree rape and first-degree kidnapping at arraignment in Pierce County Superior Court.
Court Commissioner Meagan Foley set bail at $1 million.
According to charging papers:
The man approached the girl Wednesday when she got off a bus near South 11th Street and South Yakima Avenue.
He asked how old she was and for her phone number. As she tried to walk home, he followed her and kissed her on the cheek.
She pushed him away but he grabbed her arm and said they were going to his house. Then he forced her into an alley, where he sexually assaulted her.
The girl was able to leave when she told the man she thought she saw someone else near the alley.
He followed her as she left, and she called 911, pretending she was calling her mother.
Police arrived and the girl “immediately separated herself from the defendant and tried to stay close to the officer,” the charging papers state.
The teen started crying and told officers what had happened.
The girl “said she had never before met the defendant and that he appeared intoxicated,” according to the charging papers.
The man denied the allegations.
This story was originally published November 26, 2018 at 4:02 PM.
