Convicted sex offender arrested after Arlington girl, 12, tells of assault

EVERETT — A convicted sex offender living in an Arlington halfway house has been arrested for allegedly trying to pull a 12-year-old girl into the woods.

“This is every parent’s nightmare,” Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Walt Sowa told a judge at a Tuesday bail hearing.

Fredrick A. Thurmond, 24, was booked into the Snohomish County Jail on Monday for investigation of kidnapping and assault.

Bail was set at $500,000 on Tuesday in Everett District Court.

The girl told Arlington police she was walking in the 18300 block of 31st Avenue NE late Sunday afternoon when a stranger grabbed her and tried to pull her into the woods. She managed to kick the man in the groin at which point he let go and she ran away, according to court records.

The victim reported bruises to her arms and legs during the attack.

She described the man as having a medium build, some facial hair and acne scars on his face. She said he wore a black “hoodie” style sweatshirt, white shoes and a single blue glove.

Police showed the girl the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office online data base containing sex offender information and photographs. She spotted the suspect in the mix, according to court papers.

The man had been living in a halfway house in the 18800 block of Smokey Point Boulevard. The house is within a one- to two-minute walk of the wooded area where the girl reported being attacked, police said.

Thurmond, who has several aliases, was convicted of first-degree child rape in King County in 2003 when he was a teenager. His victim was a 9-year-old boy.

In 2006, Thurmond was charged with rape. Prosecutors alleged that he and two other men raped a 16-year-old girl in Everett and threatened her with a gun. Charges were dismissed partly because the teen wouldn’t cooperate with police and prosecutors.

Thurmond also has been convicted of failing to register as a sex offender.

Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446, stevick@eraldnet.com.

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