Tacoma woman raped by homeless man while walking from church to bus stop, records say

A homeless man raped a Tacoma woman as she walked from church to the bus stop, records say.

The victim is 28 but has autism and functions at the level of a 7-year-old.

She returned home late June 17, 2018, and told her mother she’d been attacked on her way home by a man with a Jesus tattoo who’d taken her to a tent in the woods.

The woman was taken to a hospital, and a rape exam was done.

DNA results came back recently with a match to a 36-year-old homeless man with a Jesus tattoo on his chest.

On Monday, Pierce County prosecutors charged him with first-degree rape and first-degree kidnapping.

A warrant has been issued for his arrest.

Charging papers give this account:

The victim said she was walking to the bus stop when a man asked her for money then slapped her.

Holding a knife in his hands, he walked the victim into the woods and sexually assaulted her in a tent.

Detectives identified the 36-year-old transient as a suspect and interviewed him.

He denied meeting the victim and claimed he did not live in a tent, records show.

He agreed to provide a DNA sample, which matched semen taken from the victim during the hospital exam.

This story was originally published March 12, 2019 at 10:52 AM.