A Washington woman escaped a cinderblock cell in her alleged captor’s garage July 16 after being kidnapped and sexually assaulted, the FBI said Wednesday.
Authorities arrested the 29-year-old suspect, identified as Negasi Zuberi, and placed him in federal custody after his victim fled and flagged down a passing motorist for help, the FBI stated. Zuberi, also known by aliases “Sakima,” “Justin Hyche” and “Justin Kouassi,” faces charges of kidnapping, according to the news release. (RELATED: Woman Escapes ‘Makeshift Dungeon’ After Allegedly Having Been Kept As Sex Slave For 14 Years)
A “violent sex assault offender” accused of holding a kidnapped woman captive in a makeshift cinderblock cell in his Oregon garage may have other victims, the FBI says. https://t.co/uw6lhTSF36
— NBC News (@NBCNews) August 3, 2023
Zuberi, presenting himself as an undercover police officer, allegedly requested a prostitute after traveling from his Klamath Falls home to Seattle. The woman reportedly fell for the suspect’s disguise, complying as he allegedly placed her in handcuffs and leg irons.
The handcuffed woman was sexually assaulted in the back of Zuberi’s vehicle as they traveled approximately 450 miles back to Klamath Falls, the FBI said. The suspect allegedly trapped his victim behind a metal door in a makeshift cell.
“According to the complaint, this woman was kidnapped, chained, sexually assaulted, and locked in a cinderblock cell. Police say, she beat the door with her hands until they were bloody in order to break free. Her quick thinking and will to survive may have saved other woman from a similar nightmare,” Stephanie Shark, Assistant Special Agent in Charge with the FBI Portland Field Office, said.
There is reason to believe Zuberi may have other sexual assault victims across multiple states, FBI investigators said. He has lived in ten states during the past ten years.