Bail remains set at $1 million for a suspect accused of forcing a 15-year-old girl into the woods and raping her in Seattle.
SEATTLE — A victims advocate is speaking out on behalf of a teenage girl who was allegedly murdered. Raped near Seattle’s Northgate He said the incident had turned the family’s life into a “living hell” and that the 15-year-old’s sense of public security was “in tatters.”
“She is now forever traumatized by this and her family’s lives will never be the same,” attorney Julia Roman told a King County judge during Wednesday’s arraignment hearing. “If he did this to her, he would certainly do it to others.”
Joshua Kowalczewski, 35, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree rape and second-degree kidnapping charges in connection with the May 4 incident. Kowalczewski is accused of dragging a 15-year-old girl into the woods and raping her.
Roman, speaking on behalf of the 15-year-old girl’s parents, said the girl has always been independent and not afraid to go to public places.
“She was full of life, love, hope and promise,” Roman said. “She’s still a kid and he doesn’t care.”
On May 4, police said Kovalczewski approached the 15-year-old girl at a bus stop near Northeast Fifth Avenue and Northeast 103rd Street on her way to school, asked her questions, including her age, and then forced her into the woods.
Kovalczewski is accused of forcing her to perform oral sex before she screamed and escaped.
Prosecutors said a nearby construction worker heard the screams and called 911.
Kovalchevski you Charges on May 6thbail was set at $1 million, the amount requested by prosecutors.
If you or someone you know is a victim of sexual assault, you can call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673. The Washington State Department of Health provides additional resources website.
For additional resources, visit the King County Sexual Assault Resource Center: kcsarc.org.
