Police still searching for rape suspect

Attacker who posed as a law enforcement officer is still at large.

“Police are following leads in an alarming attempted rape case involving an attacker who posed as a law enforcement officer, but haven’t identified a suspect, Oak Harbor Police Capt. Rick Wallace said.In the meantime, the police continue to caution North Whidbey residents, particularly women who live alone, to be wary of anyone without a police uniform who identifies himself as a member of law enforcement.Wallace also said that reports from Seattle TV news stations of a second or third rape in Oak Harbor are false, and likely resulted over confusion about the date of the single assault. Detective Jerry Baker said a man who said he was a law enforcement officer faked his way into a woman’s Forest Meadow apartment on Oak Harbor Street just after midnight Tuesday, Aug. 1, and attempted to rape her.The man identified himself as a NCIS agent – Naval Criminal Investigative Service – and showed the woman a badge. After she let him in, the man immediately turned her around, handcuffed her and pushed her face-down on the apartment floor, where he sexually assaulted her, according to police.Before he left, the man wrapped the woman’s hands and ankles in tape. The ordeal lasted about 20 minutes, immediately after which the woman called 911.Oak Harbor Police Officer Mike Bailey and his canine partner, Bak, conducted a track from the apartment and found some evidence, according to the police.If found, the man could face kidnapping, burglary and attempted rape charges.The suspect is described only as a white man, somewhere between 5-foot-9 and 5-foot-10, and in his 20s. Baker said the woman worked with a police artist to create a sketch of the attacker, but detectives feel the sketch is not accurate enough to release to the public.Anyone with any information should contact Detective Lisa Jenne at 679-5551 or call 911. “