U.S. Marshals Arrest Sexually Violent Predator in Western Washington

Poulsbo, WA - Deputy U.S. Marshals and members of the agency’s Pacific Northwest Violent Offender Task Force apprehended at the Poulsbo Marina a man wanted for nearly a year on an outstanding federal warrant for failure to comply with sex offender registration requirements.

Rick Monroe was arrested on an outstanding federal warrant issued in the Eastern District of Washington for failure to register as a sex offender and failure to comply with international travel reporting requirements under the International Megan’s Law.

Monroe, who has multiple prior convictions, including rape of a child in the first degree, was previously civilly committed at McNeil Island Corrections Center after being classified as a “Sexually Violent Predator” by the courts. In 2024, he traveled to multiple states and is alleged to have attempted to leave the country numerous times without following mandatory sex offender registration and international travel notification requirements. Investigators discovered he had lived unregistered on a sailboat in Poulsbo Bay for the past year, allegedly to evade law enforcement.

Through extensive investigative efforts, Deputy U.S. Marshals in Eastern Washington secured a federal arrest warrant, leading to Monroe’s ultimate apprehension. This arrest was the result of a coordinated effort between multiple agencies, including the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office, Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office, U.S. Marshals Service Western District of Washington, Washington State Department of Corrections, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the USMS National Sex Offender Targeting Center, USMS Sex Offender Investigations Branch, and the Eastern District of Washington U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Monroe is scheduled to make his initial court appearance Feb. 4 at the Western District of Washington- Seattle Courthouse.

The Pacific Northwest Violent Offender Task Force is a U.S. Marshals-led partnership comprising federal, state, and local law enforcement officers from Washington, Oregon, and Alaska. The task force’s primary mission is to locate, arrest and return to the justice system the most violent and egregious federal and state fugitives.

Anyone with information is urged to contact the nearest U.S. Marshals office, the U.S. Marshals Service Communications Center at 1-800-336-0102, or USMS Tips.