YAKIMA, Wash. – A 19-year-old man was charged for allegedly raping a woman at the Yakima Area Arboretum in December 2023, according to court documents.
Mark Lee Tongate is charged with first degree rape and harassment along with a separate charge for failing to register as a sex offender.
Court documents say a woman walked to the Yakima Area Arboretum from Camp Hope after dark on Dec. 29, 2023. She had sat down in the park and was reportedly approached by Tongate who raped her and allegedly threatened to kill her if she told anyone what had happened.
The woman later reported the rape to an officer while in the hospital where she described Tongate. DNA analysis from the Washington State Patrol would later confirm Tongate as the suspect.
A register affidavit says Tongate previously had a lifetime requirement to register as a sex offender and register his address within three days of his release from jail.
Tongate had been convicted of child rape in February 2020 in the Chelan County Juvenile Court. He was also convicted of failing to register as a sex offender twice before, once as a felony and another as a gross misdemeanor.
The affidavit says Tongate had not notified the Yakima County Sheriff’s Office of his residence as of Feb. 4, 2024.
Tongate is currently in custody on $200,000 bail for the rape and harassments charges and an extra $5,000 bail for failure to register.
