Crime & Safety

Puyallup Teen Could Face Charges of Kidnapping, Child Rape and Attempted Murder in Assault of 7-Year-Old Neighbor

The 14-year-old Puyallup resident is held at Remann Hall and will face a formal arraignment next week.

The 14-year-old who allegedly kidnapped, raped and choked his 7-year-old neighbor looked meek at his first court appearance Friday, when the court found probable cause to keep him in juvenile custody until his official arraignment on Tuesday, July 16.

The 7-year-old girl is still in the hospital, intubated but in stable condition after undergoing surgery.

"The most disturbing thing about this case is that we have a 7-year-old [victim] and a 14-year-old [defendant]," said juvenile deputy prosecuting attorney Kevin Benton. "There's nothing about this that isn't disturbing--on both sides."

The boy has not been charged with a formal crime yet, but is in police custody on charges of first-degree kidnapping, child rape and attempted murder in the second degree. Benton said the court has not yet determined if he will face charges as a juvenile or adult. 

According to the charging documents, the young girl went missing from the Glenbrooke Apartment complex around 6 p.m. Wednesday night and neighborhood volunteers did a search for about an hour before calling the police.

Puyallup Police arrived on scene and canvassed the neighborhood with a door-to-door search. After a canvas failed to locate the missing girl, the search was expanded to areas outside of the complex. Central Pierce Fire & Rescue assisted the search with a flare device over the area and police called in a bloodhound from Normandy Park.

A resident of the apartment complex, who was involved with the search prior to police arrival, located a shoe at the edge of a wooded area north of the apartment complex. The Bloodhound was deployed in the area where the shoe was located. At approximately 12:13 a.m., K-9 tracked her location in the woods, where she was found lying in heavy brush.

She was found lying on her right side, obviously cold and shivering with dried blood on her face and mouth. Her jeans were unbuttoned, unsnapped and partially pulled down, with her underwear still on, according to the court documents. She indicated pain to her arms, face, head and stomach. 

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The girl was immediately able to identify her attacker as the 14-year-old boy from her apartment complex and that he choked her until she lost consciousness.

Police were able to find the boy's apartment, based on prior issues at the residence. They obtained a search warrant and found him in his bedroom. When asked if he knew why police were there, he said he hadn't seen "her" since earlier in the afternoon. During a search of his room, police found two open laundry baskets with dirty clothes inside. In a separate bag secluded in the corner, they found more clothing with what appeared to be blood and dirt. When asked about it, the boy told police, "I didn't do anything." 

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The boy was transported to the Puyallup Police Department. During the course of his interrogation, he admitted that he had taken her into the wooded area to look at a birds nest, she got a bloody nose and he left her there. He said the little girl "annoyed" him, and he hoped she would get lost. 

The teen then said she kicked him, which sent him into a "rage." He admitted that he "smacked" her, punched her in the face and knocked her to the ground. She was screaming at him to stop the whole time, he told police. When he saw her injuries, the boy knew he was going to get into trouble, so he knew he "had to get rid of her so she couldn't tell anyone." He dragged her further into the wooded area and admitted to grabbing her throat and squeezing until she passed out. When she was knocked out, he left. 

In addition to her physical injuries, there were other signs of sexual assault. The boy repeatedly denied sexually assaulting her. However, a medical examination showed signs of rape and more information is expected to be forthcoming, records state.

The 14-year-old suspect will face formal charges for the assault on Tuesday, July 16, 2013 in Remann Hall Juvenile Court.


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