Olympia man charged with attempted murder in Lacey rape case faces new rape charge
A 55-year-old man accused of raping and beating a 63-year-old woman in Lacey last year has been accused of raping another woman in Olympia.
Ryan David Bezon attended his preliminary appearance April 8 for a new case in Thurston County Superior Court.
That same day prosecutors charged Bezon with six counts related to an alleged rape that occurred between Sept. 8 and 9 in an encampment known as “The Jungle” off Martin Way East. The charges are first-degree rape, second-degree rape, first-degree kidnapping with sexual motivation, intimidating a witness and two counts of felony harassment, threat to kill.
The Olympia Police Department learned of the allegations and began investigating in October, according to court records. However, charges were filed six months later.
When reached for comment, Prosecuting Attorney Jon Tunheim said his office decided to charge Bezon after receiving a referral from OPD on March 31.
On April 8, Judge Allyson Zipp found probable cause for the alleged crimes and ordered Bezon to be held without bail until further order. Zipp determined the court could not otherwise be reasonably assured Bezon would appear in court when required, there existed a substantial danger he may commit a violent crime, and he may interfere with the case.
Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Jessica Shen argued for no bail in a signed memorandum to the court. Shen stated Bezon showed “a great propensity for violence” by kidnapping, raping and threatening the victim, a 22-year-old woman.
“The Defendant even told her, while describing all the ways he could kill her, that he was “so tired of having to do this,” implying prior similar offenses,” Shen said in the memo.
Prosecutors add new charges to previous rape case
This is not the first time Bezon has been accused of rape. Lacey police arrested him on suspicion of violently assaulting and raping a 63-year-old woman in October, The Olympian previously reported.
That assault occurred in an alley on the 4000 block of Pacific Avenue Southeast in the early morning hours of Oct. 9 – about a month after the alleged rape in The Jungle.
Lacey police found the 63-year-old woman beaten and bloodied in the alley where she often slept, according to court records. First responders transported her to Providence St. Peter Hospital in Olympia where she was stabilized.
Officers located and arrested Bezon on Oct. 10. He has remained at the Thurston County jail on a court ordered no bail hold since then.
He initially faced three charges, including first-degree rape, first-degree assault and second-degree assault. On March 19, prosecutors amended the charges against Bezon to include three counts of first-degree attempted murder.
Bezon also was charged with two counts of second-degree attempted murder, first-degree rape, first-degree attempted rape, second-degree rape, second-degree attempted rape, first-degree assault and second-degree assault.
All the charges state Bezon was armed with a deadly weapon, that being a stone, and that his conduct during the commission of the crime manifested deliberate cruelty to the victim.
When reached for comment, Tunheim clarified that the 11 counts do not describe 11 separate crimes. He said the counts are all related to the Oct. 9 attack and some counts describe separate legal theories for one crime.
“It is not uncommon for a prosecutor to amend the information prior to trial to ensure that the defendant is on notice of the various legal theories the state will present during trial,” Tunheim said. “That is what happened in this case.”
This strategy allows the jury to consider each legal theory separately and reach a verdict on each specific count, Tunheim said.
“If a judge or jury were to return a guilty verdict on all counts, the defendant could only be sentenced for the primary counts and the others would merge since they are separate theories of the same crime or lesser included crimes,” Tunheim said.
An appellate court may also examine each theory separately on appeal if the defendant is convicted of one more of the charges, he added.
The court has scheduled a jury trial for this case to start on July 28, but that may change between now and then.
Court records detail investigation into new charges
A probable cause statement among court records describes the investigation into the September rape from the perspective of law enforcement.
The Olympia Police Department first learned about the rape from an employee of a local clinic in October. The employee reported that a client disclosed being sexually assaulted by Bezon in “The Jungle” the month prior.
An officer then interviewed the client, a 22-year-old woman. She told the officer that Bezon approached her to ask for foil behind a 7-11 on Martin Way East. This was the first time she interacted with Bezon but she had seen him in the area before, she said.
In exchange for the foil, she said Bezon offered to buy her something from the inside the store.
After completing their shopping, Bezon took the woman to his dwelling in the encampment to use fentanyl together. Once there, she said Bezon accused her of stealing money from him and tied her hands behind her back.
She told the officer that Bezon proceeded to sexually assault her for several minutes. After the assault, Bezon reportedly threatened to kill her and her partner if they ever spoke about the rape. He eventually let the woman go after what she believed were several hours.
The woman went to Providence St. Peter Hospital the next day for a sexual assault exam.
She told police he was the same person who assaulted a woman in Lacey, which she saw reported in the news.
The officer then interviewed the woman’s partner. He confirmed he was aware of the rape and alleged Bezon threatened him.
He also accused several other men in “The Jungle” of assaulting him for discussing the rape. His assault occurred while Bezon stood and watched, he told the officer.
Video surveillance from the 7-11 showed the woman and Bezon had shopped together as she previously stated.
Lab reports reviewed by a detective provided “very strong support” that Bezon was a contributor to the DNA profile in the samples collected in the sexual assault exam.
On March 16, the detective interviewed the woman to gather more details about the assault and threats against her. She said Bezon described various methods of killing her and added, “I’m so tired of having to do this,” before releasing her.
She told the detective her partner received treatment for a broken nose after being assaulted by men who believed he was lying about what Bezon had done.
She said they were forced to leave “The Jungle” for their safety after their camp had been raided and all their belongings were stolen.
The detective then spoke with the woman’s partner to learn more about how he was allegedly threatened and assaulted.
The partner said he intended to confront Bezon with a machete but was dissuaded from doing so by other people at the encampment. Instead, he told a person at the encampment about what had happened, believing they were one of the few people there who could hold Bezon accountable.
The person took the partner to see Bezon. Once there, the person and two other individuals turned on him.
The partner told the detective he was punched, kicked and hit several times. They eventually sent the partner outside “The Jungle” to wait for permission to return. While he waited, one of his assailants stole their belongings.
Once allowed to return, the woman and her partner were told to stop spreading rumors about Bezon. The partner stated he still feared retaliation.
Bezon is due back in court on April 22 for his arraignment hearing.
