Woman Leaving LA Fitness Allegedly Raped

COVINGTON, WA -- Police are searching for a man accused of raping a 21-year-old woman who was taken from an LA Fitness parking lot.

The King County (WA) Sheriff’s Office says the victim was grabbed and choked as she was leaving an LA Fitness in Covington, WA, just after midnight on July 28. The suspect then took the victim to a nearby wooded area, where he allegedly took money from her wallet and raped her. The victim bit the suspect on the hand, according to the sheriff’s office.

In an e-mail to Club Industry, LA Fitness had no comment on the case.

The suspect is described as a white male, fair-skinned and in his mid-20s. He is between 5-foot-7 and 5-9, medium build with hairy legs and had a black nylon-type covering over his head, according to the sheriff’s office.

The office says the reason it waited a week to inform the public of the incident was to allow investigators to run down leads and not scare the suspect from the area, according to Seattle’s KING 5 TV.

Anyone with information about the case can call the King County Sheriff’s Office at (206) 296-3311.