Ex-Puyallup cop charged with rape also connected to out-of-state sexual assault report

A Puyallup police officer who was fired this week after his arrest for allegedly raping a woman is connected to another reported sexual assault that occurred out of state, charging papers show.

Niamkey Ange Amichia, 32, is accused locally of raping a woman he met online on Oct. 7 of last year, according to charging papers for third-degree rape. The woman told Pierce County sheriff’s deputies that he picked her up at her apartment north of Frederickson, drove her down the road, raped her and forced her out of his truck. She noted his license plate, called 911 and went to the hospital.

On Feb. 28, DNA from the woman’s exam came back as a match to specimens from an unsolved 2016 rape case in Connecticut, according to charging papers. Public records show Amichia previously worked in the state as an electrician before moving to King County in recent years.

The victim in the Connecticut case reported the suspect entered her residence in Waterbury claiming to be a police officer, bound her and raped her, according to the Pierce County charging papers. The suspect left behind a condom with his DNA. Connecticut court records indicate he has not been charged in the case.

Pierce County Superior Court Commissioner Craig Adams entered a not-guilty plea on Amichia’s behalf and set bail at $200,000 during his arraignment Friday afternoon. Amichia was represented by public defense attorney Corddaryl Woodford, who reserved argument on bail. Adams said Amichia might not qualify financially for public defense and set a mid-March hearing to evaluate his ability to pay for a private attorney.

Amichia appeared in court unshackled in a green nylon smock meant to prevent jail inmates from dying by suicide. He shook his head as he spoke with Woodford at points and held his face in his hand before corrections deputies led him out of the courtroom.

Deputy prosecutor Afton Gregson said Amichia is originally from South Africa and requested he relinquish his passport. Adams also ordered Amichia to surrender any weapons he owns.

Amichia went through Washington’s Basic Law Enforcement Academy with the Bellevue Police Department in 2021 but was later “let go” because he couldn’t pass internal training programs, according to spokesperson Meeghan Black. She said Amichia resigned in lieu of termination and did not know the specifics of his training issues.

The Puyallup Police Department hired Amichia in August and fired him upon his arrest this week, according to Police Chief Scott Engle. Engle said Amichia was still in training as of this week. He declined to comment further on the investigation.

Dispatch records show Amichia responded to his final call of the night for Puyallup police about two and a half hours before deputies responded to the rape report.

Sheriff’s spokesman Sgt. Darren Moss said it was not immediately clear Amichia was a police officer when the rape was reported in October.

Charging papers show detectives did not immediately re-contact the victim because her voicemail inbox was full and she did not call back. Investigators formally interviewed her Tuesday, after the DNA results matching the Connecticut case came back.

“If we don’t have a cooperative victim, the prosecutor won’t even look at the case,” said Moss, who noted the sexual assault unit investigates two to three new cases per week. When the DNA came back in connection to a “violent rape” this week, the case became a priority.

“Once we identified him and knew he was a police officer, it was extremely crucial to not have him on the street,” Moss said.

The Sheriff’s Department coordinated with Puyallup police to arrest Amichia as he was beginning a patrol shift Thursday night, according to Moss.

After interviewing the victim, detectives identified cell phone-location data that put Amichia in the area of the rape at the time it allegedly occurred. His truck’s license plate also matched the one the victim took down at the scene.

The victim told deputies that Amichia agreed to pay her $400 for sex, but she declined to have sex without a condom, according to charging papers. She said Amichia demanded she have sex with him, and she complied out of fear of harm.

Amichia reportedly told the woman she was lucky he didn’t decide to kill her as he forced her out of his truck, charging papers allege.

In interviews with the investigators after his arrest, Amichia admitted to paying women for sex outside his marriage but maintained he never forced himself upon someone, according to charging papers. Amichia said he had sex with the victim but was under the impression they were going on a date and did not agree to pay her.

Amichia said he didn’t remember if he used a condom but generally relies on women to bring them during meet-ups, charging papers show. Text messages with the victim indicated he was responsible for bringing one.

When asked by detectives about the Connecticut rape, Amichia first replied, “another prostitute,” and claimed he couldn’t remember back to 2016, according to charging papers.

Amichia later said he was role-playing as a police officer and did zip-tie the woman to have sex, according to charging papers.

DNA collected from Amichia during his arrest is pending analysis, charging papers show.

Court staff attempted to call Amichia’s wife at their home in Issaquah on Friday but no one picked up, according to court documents. Officials documented that Amichia required English interpreter services at some point while he was in custody.

Moss said the Sheriff’s Department investigation remains active and urged potential victims to come forward.

“Obviously we are going to keep looking at this,” Moss said.