A 50-year-old Kent man wanted in connection with a child rape investigation was arrested Saturday afternoon after Kent police received an automated license plat
A 50-year-old Kent man wanted in connection with a child rape investigation was arrested Saturday afternoon after Kent police received an automated license plate reader alert, according to the Kent Police Department.
Police said that at 1:24 p.m., an officer was on routine patrol when he received an ALPR notification that a vehicle registered to a child abuse suspect was near East Smith Street and East Titus Street.
The officer had assisted the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office in an apprehension attempt for the man two days prior, but police said the suspect was not home that day.
The man was wanted by Thurston County on probable cause for 2nd-degree rape of a child.
After running the vehicle’s plate, police said the return also showed a $500,000 warrant out of Grays Harbor County for 2nd-degree rape of a child, 1st-degree trafficking, and commercial sex abuse.
The officer notified other officers and advised that because the suspect’s home address was close to where the ALPR notification was made, the suspect was likely headed there. When officers arrived, they saw the vehicle in the man’s driveway.
Officers made public address announcements telling the man he was under arrest. He eventually exited on his own and was taken into custody without incident.
Police said he was booked into the King County Jail to wait for transport back to Grays Harbor County. Thurston County detectives were notified that the man had been apprehended so they could complete their investigation.
Officials did not release the man's identity.
