Three years before the woman who filed for a protective order against the man who authorities believe kidnapped and held a woman captive in a makeshift jail in his Oregon garage, he allegedly beat, abused, and threatened to kill the other wife and their two children.
“He physically attacks me, he hits me, he brakes (sic) and throws things, he screams at the kids and me … we get woken up every night from him being drunk and loud and scares us,” the woman wrote in a 2020 petition for a domestic violence restraining order.
The FBI reported that on July 16, they detained Negasi Zuberi, 29, also known as “Sakima,” “Justin Hyche,” and “Justin Kouassi,” in Nevada in connection with the kidnapping case. Zuberi is also suspected in at least four violent sexual assaults across four states. Government agents are concerned he has victims he hasn’t yet identified.
NBC News obtained the woman’s plea for a restraining order against the suspect’s alias, Justin Kouassi, on Thursday. The petition was filed in July 2020 in Contra Costa County, California. Whether the lawsuit proceeded to a restraining order or was dropped is unknown. According to the paperwork, a scheduled court appearance for September 2020 was canceled.
The tweet below verifies the news:
A man who officials say kidnapped and held a woman captive in a makeshift cell in his Oregon garage allegedly attacked, abused and threatened to kill another woman and their two children before she sought a protective order against him three years ago. https://t.co/L8CMN8CDcI
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) August 4, 2023
Financial abuse was also alleged, with her accusation that Zuberi had stolen her money and taken her phone. She also complained that he had “hit,” “restrained,” and “beaten” her, leading to bruises. “He comes at night without my permission, broke my windows, trying to beat on me, treatening (sic) to kill me and my kids,” she wrote.
“He treat (sic) to take them away so I can be miserable without them.” The mom and her children, who may be abuse victims, are being protected by NBC News. NBC News was unable to reach the woman on Thursday via her provided phone number. The woman’s two children from a previous relationship with Zuberi are mentioned in the petition as being afraid of him.
“My kids hide from him because he’s always loud and angry and unpredictable,” she wrote. “Wakes them up all hours of the night making them cry all time.”
Zuberi is suspected of kidnapping a sex worker last month in Seattle and transporting her to his home in Klamath Falls, Oregon, where she was held in a cinderblock cage with a metal door that could not be opened from the interior of Zuberi’s garage. One count of interstate kidnapping has been filed against him in Oregon’s federal district court.
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A prosecution complaint states that the victim “repeatedly banged on the door” until it opened after she battled her way out. After exiting, she hailed a passing automobile who dialed emergency services. In the end, Zuberi and his family were tracked down to a Walmart parking lot in Reno, Nevada on July 16.
Officials say he was holding one of his children in the front seat of a car while he spoke to his wife, who was standing outside the vehicle. “He refused to get out of the car, and he was bleeding severely because he had wounded himself with a sharp weapon.” According to the complaint, “he also attempted to destroy his phone.” The report said that the infant had suffered no injuries.
Additional charges of false imprisonment, child maltreatment, false imprisonment using the victim as a shield, runaway from another state, and assault with a deadly weapon may be found on the booking record in Washoe County, Nevada. To date, Zuberi has not listed any legal representation. Authorities said he is currently in transit from Nevada to Oregon.
According to the FBI, he has spent time in 12 different states over the past decade, including California, Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Utah, Florida, New York, New Jersey, Michigan, Illinois, Alabama, and Nevada. Authorities believe he may have drugged drinks and posed as a police officer among other tactics.
The FBI has developed a website for the inquiry where potential victims and others with relevant information can fill out a form to provide additional details. “Some of the encounters may have been filmed to make it appear as if the assault was consensual,” the page noted. “The victims are threatened with retaliation if they notify the police.”
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