Man accused of robbing woman, sexually assaulting her at gunpoint at Fife motel
A man accused of robbing a woman at a Fife motel in May, then sexually assaulting her at gunpoint, was charged Monday.
Mauricio Rodriguez Ayala, 27, was charged with first-degree rape, first-degree robbery and first-degree burglary in Pierce County Superior Court. Records show Ayala is not in custody and a bench warrant was issued for his arrest Monday.
He was charged after DNA results from the victim’s sexual assault forensic exam came back Friday. Prosecutors wrote in charging documents that the DNA matched Ayala in a national database.
Charging papers gave this account of the robbery and assault:
The woman contacted the front desk of the motel, where she had been staying, and said a stranger had raped her. Fife Police Department officers went to the scene to the speak with the woman, and she went to an area hospital to complete a sexual assault forensic exam.
At the hospital, the woman told police she was visiting from out of town and heard a knock on her motel door around 4 p.m. May 7. She opened the door and saw a man she didn’t know. According to the declaration for determination of probable cause, the man said: “Is Jessica here? I need to speak with her.”
He entered the room, and the woman yelled at him to leave, telling the man she didn’t know anyone named Jessica. The man went into a bathroom while the woman continued to tell him to leave. When he came out, the man was holding a revolver.
Then, the man pointed the gun at her and said: “this is a robbery,” before slapping her.
The woman told police she feared for her life at that moment, and gave the man the $2,500 she had in her purse. The man sexually assaulted her at gunpoint and blew methamphetamine that he was smoking in her face, probable cause documents alleged.
Later, the woman realized a call was made on her phone after she was attacked. Prosecutor’s wrote in charging documents that the woman was able to track the number and found a connection to Ayala. She saw a photo of him and told police he was the man who attacked her.
Through a records check, police found Ayala was accused the month prior of sexually assaulting a woman in Renton and hitting her with a pistol. Prosecutors wrote that the gun in that case matched the description of the gun for the case in Fife.
Surveillance footage also captured Ayala walking into the victim’s motel room just before 4 p.m. that day and leaving about an hour later, the probable cause statement alleged.
Ayala does not have a history of criminal convictions in Pierce County, according to court records.
