Sex offender arrested in Washington while allegedly attacking teenager

A 27-year-old registered sex offender from Washington was arrested in Oregon earlier this month while allegedly on his way to sexually assault a teenage girl.

According to a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) in the Western District of Washington on Thursday, James Harrison Newcomer allegedly removed his electronic monitoring device and met and assaulted three different teenagers between February and April 2024. The criminal complaint states that Newcomer met the teenagers through Snapchat.

The Justice Department said Newcomer was placed under state supervision and had been placed in an ankle monitor following a 30-month prison sentence for two counts of rape of a child.

Newcomer escapes from prison and is said to have attacked three girls within three months

On January 19, Newcomer’s ankle bracelet went offline, and when officers tried to arrest him on January 25, he was nowhere to be found.

Over the next three months, Newcomer contacted and arranged to meet various teenagers, according to the Justice Department. During the meetings, he allegedly gave the girls drugs and alcohol and sexually abused them. The girls were from Snoqualmie, Auburn and most recently Woodburn, Oregon. They were between 14 and 16 years old.

DOJ court documents show Snapchat messages in which Newcomer also allegedly tried to coerce one of the girls into sexual activity with him on a cam site to earn money.

Newcomer was arrested in Kent on June 7 and is currently in custody for Department of Corrections (DOC) violations.

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Newcomer raped girls in 2020

Court documents from July 2020 state: “Newcomer raped a 15-year-old girl when he was 24 years old. He posed as a 17-year-old boy.”

Newcomer drove from King County to Clallam County and picked up the girl near a bed and breakfast where she was visiting family. He drove around for five minutes, stopped and sexually assaulted her. He then gave the girl alcohol and marijuana and drove her to his parents’ house in King County, where he lived. He smuggled the girl into his house and sexually assaulted her approximately 10 times over several days before she was caught by police.

Further information on the allegations against Newcomer

The Justice Department said traveling with the intent to engage in sexual activity with a minor is punishable by up to 30 years in prison, but the charges in the complaint are merely allegations, the agency said.

The case is being investigated by the FBI, Woodburn Police Department, Marion County District Attorney’s Office, Auburn Police Department, Snoqualmie Police Department and Kent Police Department with assistance from the DOC.

Anyone with information on other potential victims is asked to contact the FBI Seattle Field Office at (206) 622-0460.

According to the Justice Department, Newcomer was scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in Seattle on Thursday afternoon.

Julia Dallas is a content editor at MyNorthwest. You can read her stories here. Follow Julia on X Here and send her an email here.