Man who disappeared for two years after alleged child rape arrested in Tacoma, sheriff says

A man suspected of child rape was arrested last night after being out of jail for two years That’s according to the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department.

Sheriff’s spokesman Darren Moss told The News Tribune on Wednesday that officers recognized 53-year-old Juan Steagall-Martinez when they responded to a call about a possible domestic disturbance on Oct. 29.

A neighbor at the apartment complex, Olympic Village Apartments in Tacoma, reported that the man knocked on an apartment door and thought his roommate had kicked him out.

Steagall-Martinez had a warrant out for his arrest after he was suspected of raping and abusing multiple children in 2022, according to Moss. He was a maintenance man at a mobile home park where the victims lived and befriended the families who lived there, giving him access to their children, Moss said. One victim reported rape, followed by two other victims who made similar reports.

When Steagall-Martinez found out officers were contacting families, he “immediately” disappeared, Moss said. “We tried to get things done as quickly as possible to find probable cause to arrest him.”

The sheriff’s department has issued a warrant for his arrest and has distributed flyers identifying him on the Crime Stoppers website and on social media, Moss said. Around mid-October, one of the victims’ mothers saw him again in Wapato Park in Tacoma, prompting another “media blitz” by the sheriff’s department asking if people knew where he was.