Man arrested in rape at care center

A former nursing assistant who was charged last month with raping an incapacitated woman at a long-term-care center was arrested Monday in the Philadelphia area, police said.

Lamin Darboe, who is originally from Gambia, left the United States on Aug. 4, two days before he was charged with second-degree rape and indecent liberties, according to court papers. Seattle police say he was arrested Monday by U.S. Customs and Border Protection at a Philadelphia-area airport as he arrived on a flight from Germany.

When Darboe went missing, police said they believed he might have fled to Africa. On Tuesday, a Seattle police spokesman said it wasn't clear where Darboe had been.

According to charging papers filed in King County Superior Court, Darboe, working this summer at Kindred Hospital in North Seattle, allegedly fondled and raped a 31-year-old woman who is paralyzed and can't speak as the result of a stroke.

The woman communicates by nodding her head to indicate "yes" or "no." She used an alphabet board to tell authorities about the rape, according to charging documents. She said Darboe told her not to report the assault. She has been transferred to another facility.

Kindred Hospital officials said they never would have hired Darboe in 2005 had they been aware of his termination in 2002 from Swedish Medical Center. While at Swedish's Ballard campus, Darboe reportedly made sexual comments to a woman and touched her inappropriately while giving her a bath.

A spokesman for Swedish Medical Center said the hospital filed a complaint against Darboe with the state Department of Health in 2002. The Department of Health said it never received the complaint.

In the wake of the latest allegations, the Department of Health has suspended Darboe's license. After the rape was reported, Kindred officials placed Darboe on administrative leave.

In February, Darboe was acquitted of kidnapping and second-degree rape in Snohomish County after a woman alleged she was assaulted after he offered her a ride. He claimed the sex was consensual.

Jennifer Sullivan: 206-464-8294 or jensullivan@seattletimes.com