Lakewood hotel elevator encounter leads to child luring charge

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Prosecutors say the boy was on an elevator at WoodSpring Suites when an adult asked him to come back to a room.

LAKEWOOD, Wash — A 37-year-old adult has been charged in Pierce County after a 14-year-old boy told Lakewood police the adult asked him on a hotel elevator to go back to a room, then refused to come out when officers tried to make an arrest, according to court documents.

Petra Jordan Lauama was charged Monday with luring and obstructing a law enforcement officer.

Police were called shortly after 10 p.m. May 8 to the WoodSpring Suites at 11329 Pacific Highway SW in Lakewood after the boy’s mother reported what happened.

According to court documents, the boy told officers he was on the elevator when Lauama started making small talk with him. The boy said Lauama told him he “looked sad” and asked whether he wanted to go back to Lauama’s room to have some “fun.”

The boy told police he said no, but Lauama asked again. He said the encounter made him uncomfortable, and he reported it to his mother after getting off the elevator, according to the documents.

Officers contacted Lauama in room 224. Police wrote that Lauama first said there had been no conversation, then said there had been a conversation with the boy but denied the account given by the boy and his mother.

Police said Lauama closed the hotel room door and would not come out after being told Lauama was under arrest.

Officers got a warrant and, after more than 90 minutes of trying to get Lauama to leave the room, forced the door open and took Lauama into custody.

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