Man charged with raping teen prostitutes

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SEATTLE, Aug. 10 (UPI) -- A Seattle man posing as a law enforcement officer allegedly raped two 15-year-old prostitutes and handcuffed a third prostitute.

Julian Tarver allegedly found the two 15-year-olds on Backpage.com, a Web site owned by Village Voice Media, Seattlepi.com reported Tuesday. Backpage is under fire for allegedly allowing underage prostitutes or their pimps to offer their services on the site.

Tarver was arrested last year after he allegedly posed as a vice officer in the Seattle Police Department to kidnap a prostitute. The woman, 19 at the time, said she believed he had used similar tactics on others.

Investigators now say in court documents they have found four more women who had contact with Tarver, two of them underage. He allegedly identified himself sometimes as a local police officer and at others as a federal agent, and in two cases, women said, he handcuffed them and pretended to call for backup.