Prosecutors call Washington hair salon owner a ‘dangerous offender’ who takes deal in rape case

The owner of a Washington, DC hair salon accused of drugging and raping several young girls has pleaded guilty to four counts of sexual assault as part of a deal with prosecutors.

“We are pleased with the settlement because it will take a dangerous sex offender off the streets,” said Prince George’s County District Attorney Aisha Braveboy.

With one of his victims watching, Julian Everett, 39, of New Carrollton pleaded guilty to three counts of second-degree rape and entered an Alford plea on the fourth count in a Prince George’s County, Maryland, courtroom. An Alford plea is entered when someone pleads not guilty to a crime but agrees that the evidence in the case would have led to a conviction.

Last week, Everett also pleaded guilty to kidnapping a minor and possession of child pornography.

According to prosecutors, Everett befriended three teenagers between 2005 and 2015. Braveboy described how he picked up these underage girls and served them alcoholic beverages laced with an unknown substance.

“They later woke up in a different place than before and had been victims of sexual assault,” Braveboy said.

The four victims who came forward in this case were between 16 and 18 years old at the time of the attack.

Braveboy said Everett, whose barbershop was located near Howard University in Washington DC’s Shaw neighborhood, specifically targeted students at the college. Two of the victims were Howard students.

“Although there are four victims whose cases were resolved today, we believe there are additional victims who, for whatever reason, chose not to disclose,” Braveboy said.

Under the agreement, Everett would be sentenced to up to 25 years in prison, with sentencing scheduled for January 2025 after he is convicted on federal charges related to the case, which include kidnapping and transporting a minor across state lines.

Everett was arrested on March 21, 2019 and is accused of four counts of sexual assault of teenagers in 2016, 2015 and 2005.

The victims

In the case of the first victim, a then-17-year-old girl told police that Everett picked her up from her home in Washington, DC in August 2016 and drove her to his hair salon. There, Everett allegedly served the teen a drink that made her sick. She kept losing consciousness as Everett allegedly drove her to his New Carrollton home and raped her.

He is also accused of filming and photographing the sexual assault.

The second victim said Everett picked her up from her home in Virginia and promised to stay in the area, but instead took her to his home in Maryland, where he served her an alcoholic drink and then sexually assaulted her, prosecutors said.

After the attack, the second victim accused Everett of breaking her phone when she tried to call 911 and punching her in the mouth, breaking a tooth, when she tried to scream for help. The 16-year-old girl was able to escape and flag down an oncoming car to get help.

The third victim told police that Everett took her to a gas station and gave her a drink that prevented her from leaving on her own. He is accused of then raping her in his home.

Her sexual assault was linked to Everett after DNA from her sex offender kit matched the second victim’s DNA contained in the kit.

The fourth victim, prosecutors said, came forward after Everett’s arrest and said he took her to his home in 2015, when she was 16, and served her a mixed drink that made her lose concentration and feel dizzy and weak. The teenager then said she was raped by Everett.

Electronic equipment

In 2019, police searched Everett’s home and seized several electronic devices, including phones and computers. Prosecutors said they found sexually explicit images and videos of the victims on Everett’s devices, including videos of the sexual assaults.

Pictures of a fifth, unidentified victim were also found.

Public prosecutor’s office is looking for further victims

The district attorney’s office said it is still looking for additional victims and encourages any victims to come forward if they have not already done so. Braveboy said this applies not only to possible victims of Everett, but to all rape victims.

“We want to get these violent offenders off the streets. To do that, victims need to come forward and know that they can and will remain anonymous to the public. Of course, they have to testify in court if we prosecute a case,” she said. “But we take good care of our victims.”

Assistant District Attorney Jessica Garth thanked the victims for their courage in this case, in which one victim had to wait nearly 20 years for justice. Garth said that such cases are very difficult for victims, which leads to some not coming forward.

“Victims have a certain sense of responsibility. When you choose to consume an alcoholic beverage, you take on a certain sense of responsibility for what might happen to you if you are attacked after consuming that beverage,” Garth said. “Even if you are at the point where you can no longer consent.”

Garth said in these cases, prosecutors must explain to jurors that people under the influence of drugs or alcohol cannot consent, even if they consumed the alcohol voluntarily.

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