Shaun Paul Lewis Whitmore, 45, pleaded not guilty last week to kidnapping and first-degree rape. Each charge also carries a deadly weapon enhancement.
It was about 4:26 a.m., on July 18, when a man called 911 to report his friend was raped at knifepoint at the Oregon Way Tavern, located at 446 Oregon Way, according to arresting documents.
“Squinty eyes,” was one of the descriptions the victim gave police of the suspect, as well as his estimated height, gender, vehicle and race.
With the victim’s help, police were able to zero in on the man’s car, parked behind the Oregon Way Tavern. After being detained, identified and searched, police found a silver Gerber pocketknife allegedly on Whitmore.
The Daily News contacted the owners of the Oregon Way Tavern, but they did not respond to phone calls.
What happened?
Both Whitmore and the victim provided statements to police, each saying they initially met inside the tavern.
He gave his statement outside the bar, while she gave her statement at PeaceHealth St. John Medical Center.
The victim said the encounter happened after she and her friends met Whitmore at the Oregon Way Tavern, near El Ranchero and House of Roses. He began making romantic advances towards her, but she continuously turned him down, the report states.
Eventually, she and her friends left for Rainier to visit another bar, and Whitmore tagged along with the group, but by the time they arrived, the bar was closed.
The victim accepted a ride back to the Oregon Way Tavern from Whitmore, but she said he kept making sexual advances towards her.
When they arrived back at the Oregon Way Tavern, Whitmore parked on the east side of the parking lot, and the victim walked to her car.
When she opened her driver’s side door and leaned in to place her purse on her passenger seat, Whitmore allegedly pulled her pants down.
“You are gonna like it,” were the comments the victim heard during the attack, she told police. Whitmore allegedly grabbed the victim by the hair and pressed her face into the car seat.
She said Whitmore told her he had a knife. She was in fear for her life, arresting documents say.
Cowlitz County Superior Court Judge Patricia Fasset set Whitmore’s bail at $250,000, as well as appointed a public defender, and issued a no-contact order on July 21.
Whitmore has a scheduled hearing on Aug. 14 to determine a trial date.
Matt Esnayra covers public safety in Cowlitz County.
