BATON ROUGE — A man accused of imprisoning and raping a woman he knows was out of jail on bond in two other cases at the time of his arrest.
Devaughn Tyler, 26, was booked Tuesday, May 19, into EBR’s Parish Prison on second-degree rape, false imprisonment, simple robbery, battery and theft.
He is accused of luring a woman he knows to the house he shares with his mother on April 29 by saying he had some things that belonged to her, court records say. She picked him up after work and they went to the home on Oak Street, according to Tyler’s arrest warrant.
“Once at his mother’s residence, the defendant brought the victim inside where he locked an inside dead bolt lock on the front door that only he had a key for and then lead the victim to his bedroom while stating that her belongings were in his closet,” the warrant said.
He got her into the bedroom, locked the door and said he wanted to have sex, the warrant said. She refused, and he “forcibly grabbed the victim and began removing her clothing,” the warrant said.
He is accused of repeatedly punching the victim in the face and then sexually assaulting her. He noticed that her nose was bleeding, unlocked the bedroom door and went to the bathroom to get her a towel. She took that opportunity to run from the room, but couldn’t get out of the house because the front door was still deadbolted, the warrant said.
Her “cries of distress” alerted Tyler’s mother, who was home at the time. She tried to talk Tyler into letting the woman leave, the warrant said.
At that point, the victim said, Tyler had her in a bear hug and was picking her up to try to get her back into his bedroom, the warrant said.
Some time later, Tyler’s mother told him police cars were driving by the house, the warrant said. He unlocked the front door and the woman ran to her vehicle, locking the doors behind herself. But Tyler followed her to her car and tried to get in through the passenger door, the warrant said.
He then stood behind the vehicle to prevent her from escaping. The woman said she slowly backed up until she had enough room to drive away. She went to the police department and reported the attack, the warrant said.
Accused of murder at 16
Records show Tyler has been involved in the criminal justice system since at least 2015, when he was accused of being involved in the murder of a man during a robbery. He was 16 at the time, but was charged as an adult in February 2016 along with two other men.
In that case, Tyler was accused of going with two other men to a home on Tracy Avenue, where they allegedly robbed and shot a man. Witnesses said the attackers ran to a nearby tree line, and Tyler was arrested there. They were indicted on a second-degree murder charge.
Tyler posted $150,000 bond and was released. While out on that bond, in July 2016, Tyler was arrested as a juvenile on drug and gun charges. He was released from juvenile detention because he wasn’t tried within 30 days, but the district attorney’s office asked that his bond be revoked, court records show.
At a hearing in November 2016, a judge ordered him back to jail in the murder because he violated his bond.
In July 2017, Tyler pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of criminal conspiracy to commit armed robbery. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison without probation, parole or suspension of sentence.
2019 arrest
Less than two years later in June 2019, Tyler was arrested on drug and gun charges after his then girlfriend called police to say that she was trying to break up with him and he was sending her threatening text messages, records show. While the deputy was looking at the messages on the woman’s phone, Tyler called her using FaceTime. She answered and could see he was in her apartment complex. That’s when records say the deputy met him outside, found cocaine in his pocket, marijuana in his sock and a stolen gun.
In December 2020, Tyler pleaded guilty to possession of cocaine and the other charges were dismissed. He was sentenced to two years in prison with credit for time served.
2022 arrest
In August 2022, Tyler was arrested on marijuana possession and as a felon with a firearm. He was a passenger in a traffic stop, and had marijuana in his pocket and sock, arrest records show. A gun was in the back seat and all three men in the vehicle were convicted felons.
Arrest reports show that Tyler chatted with officers and other arrestees while police were preparing booking paperwork.
He suggested that he was a supporter of Gavin Long, the man who killed three law enforcement officers and injured two more in July 2016. Deputy Nick Tullier died in 2022 from the injuries Long inflicted. Long was killed by police.
“Tyler stated one of his rifles is a fully automatic .308 and would go straight through my vest,” the arresting officer wrote. “Tyler again mentioned Gavin Long and stated he ‘can be on that Gavin Long s***’.”
Tyler was released on $5,500 bond.
2025 arrest
He was arrested in November 2025 after an incident involving gunfire on Enterprise Street. He was booked with resisting arrest, possession of marijuana, obstruction of justice and misrepresentation during booking and as a felon with a firearm. Police said he refused to give his name or be fingerprinted after his arrest.
He posted $50,000 bond and was released in early March.
He is due in court on June 9 in the 2022 and 2025 cases.
After his current arrest, Judge Gail Horn Ray placed a hold on him at East Baton Rouge Parish Prison in his 2022 case to prevent his release.
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