A federal jury found an Oregon man guilty Friday of kidnapping and raping two women, holding one captive in a cell he built in a Klamatha Falls garage.
Negasi Zuberi, 30, also known as Justin Joshua Hyche, was arrested on July 16, 2023, in Reno, Nevada, where he fled with his family after the victim he kidnapped in Seattle and returned to Oregon fled and flagged down a passing driver . As CrimeOnline previously reported, Zuberi was initially charged with interstate kidnapping.
Investigators say he kidnapped the woman while posing as a police officer, put her in handcuffs and leg irons, and held her down with a stun gun. While he was at his home – where his wife and child lived – he locked her in a makeshift cell built into his garage. The woman told investigators that she slept for a while, then, fearing she was going to die, she slammed the cell door until her hands bled and she broke it.
During the course of the investigation, federal agents learned that this was not the first time Zuberi had kidnapped someone and taken them back home. Zuberi kidnapped and raped another victim on May 6, 2023, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon said. This victim testified that she saw concrete blocks stacked in his garage, which were later used to build the cell where he held his second victim.
On August 2, 2023, Zuberi was charged with kidnapping and transporting a victim for the purpose of engaging in criminal sexual activity. Then, in August, a second count of kidnapping was added to the quashed indictment along with charges of unlawful possession of a firearm, ammunition and attempted escape.
Cinderblock/FBI cell phone
According to The Oregonian, both victims were 21 years old at the time.
The eight-day trial ended Friday after four hours of jury deliberation. The judges found him guilty on all counts.
Zuberi’s defense did not call any witnesses, instead playing a recording of one of the victims in the backseat of their van, saying it showed they had consensual sex. However, earlier this week, the woman testified that Zuberi made what he called an “insurance” video, forcing her to lie on it and pretend to have fun. The goal was to blackmail her into remaining silent, prosecutors argued.
“He fulfilled her concerns,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathan J. Lichvareik said in closing arguments, but she took the stand anyway.
Zuberi faces life in prison on the kidnapping charge when he is sentenced on January 16.
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(Featured photo: Negasi Zuberi/FBI)