An alleged kidnapper is in police custody after a woman was able to escape a harrowing situation.
Negasi Zuberi, 29, is accused of kidnapping a woman in Washington and taking her hundreds of miles away to his home in Klamath Falls, OR, after posing as an undercover police officer, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Portland Field Office.
"According to the complaint, this woman was kidnapped, chained, sexually assaulted, and locked in a cinderblock cell," Stephanie Shark, Assistant Special Agent in Charge with the FBI Portland Field Office, said in a statement included in a Aug. 2 press release. "Police say she beat the door with her hands until they were bloody in order to break free."
"Her quick thinking and will to survive may have saved other women from a similar nightmare," she continued. "We are fortunate that this brave woman escaped and alerted authorities."
Police said the victim told investigators that Zuberi abducted her by pointing a taser and placing her in handcuffs, leg irons and putting her in the back seat of his vehicle, traveling roughly 450 miles, while allegedly sexually assaulting her.
After arriving at his home in Oregon, according to the victim, she was moved into a makeshift cinderblock cell located in his garage, which had a metal door installed in reverse so it could only be opened from the outside. After Zuberi left, she repeatedly banged on the door until her hands bloodied and was able to break the door open and escape the room, according to authorities.
The victim was then able to flag down passerby, who called 911.
According to the statement shared by the FBI, the cinderblock cell described by the victim was found by the Klamath Falls Police Department after they obtained a search warrant for Zuberi's home. Though Zuberi fled after the victim's escape, authorities say, he was tracked down in Reno, NV, and was taken into custody after a brief standoff with police.
An attorney hasn't been listed yet for Zuberi in court records, per the Associated Press.
According to police, Zuberi has lived in 10 states over the last decade including California, Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Utah, Florida, New York, New Jersey, Alabama, and Nevada. Investigators said they have reason to believe there could be additional victims.