(NewsNation) — A jury convicted an Oregon man on charges of kidnapping and raping two women, including one he held in a makeshift cell.
Negasi Zuberi, 30, who has used numerous aliases including Sakima, Justin Hyche and Justin Kouassi, is said to have lived in at least 10 states over the last 10 years. Authorities believe he may have other victims in those areas that are not yet known.
Zuberi was captured in 2023 after leading investigators to her former cell, which was constructed in the garage of a house in Klamath Falls.
Zuberi approached the woman under the guise of purchasing sex while in Seattle, but then told her he was an undercover police officer after getting her alone. He pretended to arrest her and put her in handcuffs and leg irons.
Zuberi then transported her back to the cell, sexually assaulting her on the trip.
The makeshift cell had a metal door that was only able to be opened from the outside and Zuberi kept the victim there while his wife and child were at home in the house.
The woman was able to break down the door and escape after Zuberi left the garage, climbing a fence to escape.
Officers found a notebook detailing a plan called “Operation Take Over,” which included reminders to leave his phone at home, make sure he abducted women who did not have a lot of people who would look for them and what appeared to be details on how to dispose of a body.
According to court documents, Zuberi also wanted multiple women to have his children so he could “raise an Army.”
Zuberi was arrested in Reno, Nevada, after a standoff in a Walmart parking lot.
The FBI says Zuberi had different methods of gaining control over his victims, including pretending to be a police officer, drugging their drinks and purchasing services from sex workers before assaulting them. He threatened the victims with retaliation if they were to report him.
A superseding indictment filed in February also included details of a kidnapping and sexual assault that happened six weeks before the one in Seattle. Zuberi approached a woman who was stranded outside a bar, the complaint said, and started walking with her to find her friends. The next thing she recalled was being in his car and not knowing how she got there.
Zuberi sped up when the woman tried to jump out of the car and took her to a remote area where he used a Taser on her and bound her before taking her to his home and raping her multiple times.
The woman eventually convinced Zuberi to let her go.
Zuberi has not yet been sentenced and could face life in prison.
