Sex offender pleads guilty to assault and rape of Spokane Valley gas station clerk

A convicted sex offender pleaded guilty Friday to a vicious rape of a Spokane Valley gas station clerk who said she was abducted and choked to near unconsciousness several times during the attack in 2018.

Michael D. Rush, 38, appeared Friday and accepted an agreement to plead guilty to first-degree burglary and assault and third-degree rape. As part of the deal, Rush faces 467 months, or nearly 39 years, in prison.

Superior Court Judge Maryann Moreno accepted Rush’s guilty plea and scheduled his sentencing for April 19 at 2:30 p.m., Spokane County Prosecutor Larry Haskell said. He prosecuted the case along with Deputy Prosecutor Kelly Fitzgerald.

“I really can’t comment further until Judge Moreno renders her decision,” Haskell said.

The attack occurred in the early morning hours of Jan. 13, 2018, at the Cenex Zip Trip in Spokane Valley.

Spokane County Sheriff’s deputies responded after a female employee told them that Rush came into the business in the early morning hours and forced her into the convenience store’s bathroom. While inside, the victim claimed that Rush choked and raped her for about a half hour.

The woman was able to trigger a store alarm on her lanyard, which alerted deputies to respond.

According to court records, Rush stayed at the store and acted like he was a store employee as customers arrived and waited several minutes for service. Each time, Rush either stayed in the bathroom or told the customers that he was sick. He also said the store was closed because his wife was having kidney failure and needed to be taken to the hospital.

The victim told deputies that Rush choked her to near unconsciousness several times, according to court records. Later, while at Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center, deputies noted signs of severe choking, including blood pooling in the woman’s eyes. She also had bruising around her left eye and bruised gums.

“In my training and experience, I have never seen a strangulation victim with the severity of (the victim’s) injures,” wrote detective Robert Satake in an affidavit.

During the confrontation, the victim told investigators she tried to lock the door after Rush exited the business to deal with customers. But before deputies could arrive, Rush shouldered his way back into the building.

Deputies arrested Rush as he was attempting to leave the convenience store at 8215 E. Trent Ave. The registered sex offender successfully slipped out of his restraints multiple times, including when he was strapped to a gurney at Sacred Heart.

Rush, who had 10 prior felony convictions including first-degree rape, claimed to have ingested methamphetamine and heroin before his arrest, but deputies determined there was no evidence he was under the influence of drugs.

A recent search of Rush’s phone uncovered internet search history related to the sexual assault of women, according to court documents. Deputies also found 11 pages of search results for the term “necro,” the Greek prefix meaning death.

The gas station attack occurred two days after Rush was released from the Chelan County Jail.