The suspect was identified by Lacey police as Charles J. Davis, 45. He was arrested Wednesday and booked into Thurston County Jail for investigation of first-degree rape.

Charles J. Davis

The girl asked a group of men where the bus schedules were posted, and she was directed to an area near the restrooms.

As the victim was nearing the area she was grabbed by several men and pulled into the men's room. She was taken into a toilet stall where she was held down and sexually assaulted.

The victim later was taken to a hospital for treatment and a sexual assault exam, in which DNA evidence was collected, said Lacey police spokesman Lt. Jim Mack.

The DNA was sent to the Washington State Patrol Crime Laboratory in Tacoma, but the lab could find no DNA matches for the sample in its data base when the sample was processed in January 2002.

Then, in April of this year, the Lacey Police Department received a report from the state crime lab that the DNA had been matched to Davis.

Lacey Detective Bev Reinhold began re-investigating the case and gathered evidence which indicated Davis was in the Lacey area during 2001, Mack said.

An arrest warrant was issued and Davis was tracked down in Tacoma on Wednesday, with assistance from the state Department of Corrections Fugitive Apprehension Task Force.

He was taken into custody without incident and interviewed by the Lacey Police Department. He then was placed under arrest.

The statute of limitations for rape under Washington state law is 10 years, meaning that a suspect could be tried for the transit center rape anytime before September 2011.

The Lacey Police Department is still attempting to identify other suspects who took part in this crime. Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Reinhold at (360) 459-4333, or call Crime Stoppers at (360) 493-2222. Callers never have to leave their name.