MEDFORD — In his first federal court appearance in Medford after being arrested July 16 in Nevada, a Klamath Falls man pleaded not guilty Monday, Aug. 16, to accusations that he kidnapped a woman in Seattle, sexually assaulted her and confined her in a cinder-block cell at his home before she escaped.

Negasi Zuberi, 29, was arraigned on charges of kidnapping and transportation with intent to engage in sexual activity.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark D. Clarke ordered Zuberi to be detained pending trial.

Zuberi’s first appearance in Medford comes weeks after a July 26 hearing in Nevada, where Zuberi was arrested and detained pending his transfer to Oregon.

A federal grand jury indicted Zuberi on Aug. 2 on the kidnapping and sexual assault charges.

A criminal complaint filed by an FBI agent stated that Zuberi met the victim July 15, 2023, in Seattle, where he initially solicited the victim for prostitution.

When the encounter was over, the complaint said, Zuberi allegedly said he was an undercover officer and forced the victim into his car, placed shackles on the woman, and drove her from Washington to Oregon.

When the victim asked why the trip was taking so long, Zuberi allegedly said it was because he was taking her to a substation. But when the victim looked over Zuberi’s shoulder and saw his smartphone stating their destination was more than two hours away, she knew “Zuberi was not a police officer and that she was being kidnapped,” the criminal complaint stated.

Zuberi allegedly pulled his car over and raped the victim during the trip before they arrived around 7 a.m. at his home in Klamath Falls, the complaint stated.

Shielding the victim’s face with a hood, Zuberi allegedly took her into his garage, where he had constructed a “makeshift cell” with a door installed in reverse so it could not be opened from the inside, the complaint stated.

Once he allegedly placed the victim in the cell, Zuberi said he had to leave to do paperwork.

The victim reportedly slept briefly, but “awoke to the realization that she would likely die if she did not attempt to escape,” according to the complaint.

The victim repeatedly beat on the door and was able to break the door open and escape the room. Once outside of the cell, the victim saw Zuberi’s vehicle parked in the garage, saw a handgun inside, retrieved it and fled. The victim waved down a passing motorist, who called 911.

On July 16, Nevada State Patrol officers located Zuberi with his family in the parking lot of a Walmart in Reno. Zuberi — who was in the front seat of the car with his child while talking to his wife — cut himself and tried to destroy his phone before he was taken into custody.

Back in Klamath Falls, authorities converged on Zuberi’s home, where they reportedly found weapons and handwritten notes, including one about “operation take over” that allegedly shows Zuberi planned for the kidnapping.