The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is searching for other victims around the country after one escaped a cinder block "dungeon" in an Oregon man's house.
According to a press statement from the FBI Portland Field Office, 29-year-old Negasi Zuberi has been arrested on federal abduction charges after a lady from Seattle fled from his house in Klamath Falls, Oregon. The FBI also reported that the lady claimed she was the victim of a sexual assault.
Zuberi has been living in at least ten different states since 2016, and the FBI has tied him to violent attacks in at least four of them. The agency said that there is reasonable suspicion that there are further victims.
Documents filed in court on Wednesday, August 2, reveal that an Oregon grand jury indicted him on one count of abduction and one count of transportation with intent to engage in sexual behavior.
Oregon Man Abducted Seattle Lady
As per the FBI's press release, Zuberi left his residence in Klamath Falls on July 15 and proceeded to Seattle, where he posed as an undercover police officer to hire a prostitute. The victim said that Zuberi aimed a Taser at her, placed her in handcuffs and leg irons, and drove off with her in the trunk.
In a statement from the Klamath Falls Police Department, Zuberi informed the victim that she was being arrested. The victim said that Zuberi "had a firearm, police patches, a taser, and other law enforcement equipment."
The woman advised investigators that he drove more than 450 miles back to his home in Klamath Falls after sexually assaulting her en route.
The FBI said that when he arrived at the house, he locked the lady inside "a makeshift cell he had constructed in his garage" using cinder blocks and a metal door. Reportedly, she was able to escape her cell by continually banging on the door.
"The victim was able to break the welds on the screen door and pull the metal screen material down. The victim then climbed through a small opening in the door and escaped," the police described.
The lady reportedly waved down a passing driver, who then dialed 911. Klamath Falls police said they were called to a local hospital about a rape victim who had been transported there.
Several hours later, detectives used cellular technology to locate Zuberi in Nevada, where he was eventually apprehended after a brief standoff. He was arrested in the Walmart lot.
Preyed on Sex Workers, Roommates
According to a CNN report, the FBI was requested because there is a real possibility this was not Zuberi's first crime of this nature. The agency believes the suspect preyed upon sex workers and roommates.
The FBI has said that it has reason to suspect Zuberi targeted sex workers or roommates in the states of California, Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Utah, Florida, New York, New Jersey, Alabama, and Nevada between August 2016 and July 2023.
The FBI believes that Zuberi, who also goes by the names Sakima, Justin Hyche, and Justin Kouassi, uses a variety of techniques to "gain control of his victims," including drugging their drinks, posing as a police officer, and enlisting the help of sex workers to sexually assault them.
