Ritzville man charged with rape

The Adams County Prosecutor's office has charged a Ritzville man with rape.

According to a written statement from Ritzville Police Chief Dave McCormick, Michael A. Kuest, 27, was arrested on June 3 at approximately 7:05 p.m. Police say Kuest is listed as a transient but had recently lived in the Ritzville area.

Officers responded to a 911 call a little before 5:30 p.m. at the 400 block of East Birch Avenue in Ritzville. At McCormick’s request, officers received assistance at the scene from the Adams County Sheriff’s Department and the Washington State Patrol.

“The report came in on a 911 line to the Adams County Sheriff’s dispatch advising the victim was naked and had been badly beaten,” McCormick wrote in his statement.

The suspect was booked into the Adams County Jail on charges of First Degree Rape, First Degree Assault and Unlawful Imprisonment, according to McCormick’s statement.

The victim is an adult female who lives in Spokane. A Ritzville ambulance transported her to Deaconess Medical Center in Spokane.

The Adams County Prosecutor filed formal charges of Rape in the First Degree on June 5. As of the time of the publishing of this story, Kuest is still being held in the Adams County Jail on a $250,000 bond.

Kuest recently served jail time in Lincoln County after pleading guilty on April 23 to attempting to elude a pursuing police vehicle.

The Journal will have more information on this story in the coming issues.