Police working to reconcile ‘inconsistencies’ over alleged rape at Bellevue college

BELLEVUE, Wash. — Police say there are “inconsistencies” between information provided by the victim of an alleged rape at Bellevue College and evidence found at the scene.

At about noon on Tuesday, police sent an update saying they do not believe there is any ongoing threat at the school or the community, regarding an alleged rape at the college in the morning.

Police originally said a woman was raped in a bathroom on campus on Tuesday morning in what appeared to be a random attack.

Bellevue officers were called to the first floor of the “L” building on the campus shortly before 9 a.m. The victim told officers that when she entered the bathroom, a man was inside. He allegedly raped her at knifepoint.

“This was a very traumatic experience for this young lady. And we’re just fortunate that she wasn’t hurt more seriously. And we’re going to be doing everything we can to identify and arrest the suspect,” said Bellevue Police Spokesperson Seth Tyler, at the time of the original report.

The woman was taken to Overlake Hospital with cuts.

Police used a drone and a K-9 team to search for the suspect but he was not found. He was described as a clean-shaven white man in his early 20s with brown hair. He was wearing a hoodie.

“Bellevue is a very safe community. We believe this was a random occurrence. This is the very rare for us to have a stranger rape here in the city of Bellevue,” said Tyler, at the time of the original report.

The college is closed for the rest of the day.

Anyone who saw something suspicious or has any other information is asked to call 911.

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