FOLEY, Ala. — The Foley Police Department has arrested a 39-year-old Mobile man on a first-degree rape charge in connection with an incident that allegedly occurred on Friday, Aug. 28, 2026, in Foley.
According to a news release from the Foley Police Department, Tyrone Sykes, 39, was arrested and charged with first-degree rape following an investigation by FPD detectives. Officials said the charge stems from an incident that allegedly happened in Foley on Aug. 28, and that the accuser reported the matter to police shortly thereafter. Probable cause was established to arrest Sykes, and a “Be on the lookout” notice was issued to other law enforcement agencies in the region to help find him. Officers with the Mobile Police Department and the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office ultimately located Sykes at a home on Moffett Road in Mobile and took him into custody. Foley police said the investigation is ongoing.
The Foley Police Department did not release additional details about the alleged incident, the relationship between the suspect and the accuser, or the circumstances that led to the report. South Alabama News does not name the alleged victim in sexual assault cases and is not identifying any potential witnesses. Anyone with additional information is asked to contact the Foley Police Department.
What the charge means in Alabama
First-degree rape is one of the most serious felony charges recognized under Alabama law. Under the relevant statute, a person commits first-degree rape by engaging in sexual intercourse with another person by forcible compulsion, by being incapable of consent due to physical helplessness or mental incapacity, or where the victim is younger than 12 years old. The crime is also first-degree rape when the perpetrator is 16 or older and the victim is between 12 and 15 and at least two years younger than the perpetrator.
First-degree rape is a Class A felony in Alabama, the most serious felony classification under state law. A conviction carries a sentence of 10 years to life in prison and a fine of up to $60,000. A sentencing court may also impose additional conditions, including lifetime sex offender registration under the Alabama Sex Offender Registration and Community Notification Act, which is one of the more comprehensive sex offender registries in the country. Defendants charged with first-degree rape are entitled to a preliminary hearing in Baldwin County District Court, and, if probable cause is found, the case is bound over to a Baldwin County grand jury for possible indictment. Cases of this seriousness are typically prosecuted by senior attorneys within the Baldwin County District Attorney’s Office.
Because of the severity of the charge and the consequences of a conviction, defense attorneys handling first-degree rape cases typically mount vigorous defenses. Common defense strategies include challenging the credibility of the accuser, contesting the forensic evidence, arguing that the encounter was consensual, and seeking to exclude statements made by the defendant or the accuser on constitutional grounds. A defendant who is indigent is entitled to a court-appointed attorney, and serious felony cases in Baldwin County are typically assigned to attorneys with experience in criminal defense.
How a multi-jurisdiction arrest like this one typically works
The investigation in this case began in Foley, in the south end of Baldwin County on the Gulf Coast, and the arrest occurred in Mobile, across Mobile Bay to the north. The fact that the Mobile Police Department and the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office helped locate and apprehend Sykes on the Foley warrant is a routine example of interagency cooperation between law enforcement agencies along the upper Gulf Coast. The “Be on the lookout” notice, sometimes called a BOLO, is a standard broadcast used by one agency to ask other agencies to be on the watch for a particular person. Once a BOLO is issued, officers in the surrounding jurisdictions who encounter a person matching the description can stop, identify, and detain that person for the originating agency.
Mobile is located across Mobile Bay from Foley, with the two cities connected by the Cochrane–Africatown USA Bridge and, to the south, by the causeway across the eastern shore of the bay. The Mobile Police Department, the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office, and the Foley Police Department all regularly coordinate on cases that cross jurisdictional lines, and the agencies share access to computerized criminal history databases, license-plate readers, and other tools that help identify and locate wanted persons.
Once Sykes was located at the home on Moffett Road, he was taken into custody and held for transport back to Baldwin County. Moffett Road is a major thoroughfare on the west side of Mobile that runs southwest from the city’s downtown toward the University of South Alabama and the Semmes area. The home where Sykes was located is not the site of any alleged offense in the Foley case — it is simply where the suspect was found at the time of the arrest.
About Foley and the Foley Police Department
Foley is a city in Baldwin County, Alabama, located a few miles inland from the Gulf of Mexico beaches of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach. The city is the seat of a growing retail and tourism economy that draws visitors from across the region to its outlet malls, its proximity to the beaches, and its annual events including the Baldwin County Strawberry Festival. The Foley Police Department is the primary law enforcement agency for the city, and is staffed by sworn officers, civilian employees, and reserve officers who patrol the city, respond to calls for service, and investigate crimes that occur within the city limits.
Baldwin County is the largest county in Alabama by land area and one of the fastest-growing counties in the state. The county is served by the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office, the Foley Police Department, and a number of other municipal police departments including those in Gulf Shores, Orange Beach, Daphne, Fairhope, Bay Minette, and Spanish Fort. Serious felony cases in Foley are typically prosecuted by the Baldwin County District Attorney’s Office, which maintains offices in Bay Minette, the county seat.
The Foley Police Department regularly reminds residents that reports of sexual assault can be made in person at the police department, by phone, or, in some cases, through an online reporting portal. Survivors of sexual assault are also encouraged to seek medical attention and to contact a victim advocacy organization for support. The Alabama Crime Victims Compensation Commission may be able to help cover the cost of medical care, counseling, and other expenses related to the aftermath of a violent crime.
Ongoing investigation
The Foley Police Department said the investigation into the alleged Aug. 28 incident is ongoing. Detectives are likely to be interviewing the accuser, any potential witnesses, and the suspect, and reviewing any physical evidence that has been collected. Forensic examinations, including sexual assault forensic examinations performed at a local hospital, are part of the standard investigative process in rape cases in Alabama, and the results of those examinations are typically introduced as evidence if the case proceeds to trial.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact the Foley Police Department. South Alabama News does not name the alleged victim in sexual assault cases, and we have limited the details in this article to what the Foley Police Department has publicly released. South Alabama News will update this story if additional information is released by FPD or by the Baldwin County District Attorney’s Office.
Resources for sexual assault survivors in Alabama
Survivors of sexual assault in Alabama have a number of resources available to them, regardless of whether they choose to report the crime to law enforcement. The Alabama Coalition Against Rape is the statewide organization that coordinates rape crisis services across Alabama, and it operates a 24-hour hotline that survivors can call for crisis support, information about local resources, and assistance with safety planning. The coalition can also connect survivors with local rape crisis centers, which provide confidential advocates who can accompany survivors to forensic examinations, to law enforcement interviews, and to court proceedings.
Medical care is an important consideration for survivors, and the State of Alabama has designated a network of hospitals that are equipped to perform sexual assault forensic examinations, sometimes called rape kits, by specially trained nurses. The examination is voluntary, and survivors can decline any portion of it, but the evidence collected during a forensic examination can be valuable in identifying an assailant and prosecuting a case. Evidence is collected, stored, and analyzed through the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences, which maintains laboratories across the state.
For survivors who choose to report the crime to law enforcement, the experience typically begins with a report to the agency that has jurisdiction over the location where the crime occurred. In this case, that agency is the Foley Police Department. Reports can generally be made in person, by phone, or, in some jurisdictions, through an online portal. Once a report is made, a detective is typically assigned to the case, and the survivor is interviewed about what happened. Survivors have the right to have an advocate present during law enforcement interviews, and the right to be treated with respect and dignity throughout the process.
Survivors may also be eligible for compensation through the Alabama Crime Victims Compensation Commission, which can help cover the cost of medical care, counseling, lost wages, and other expenses related to the aftermath of a violent crime. Eligibility for compensation is generally not affected by the survivor’s decision to participate in the prosecution of the case, and applications can be made through the Commission’s website or through a victim advocate.
What the public can do
Members of the public can support survivors of sexual assault by believing them when they come forward, by respecting their privacy, and by advocating for policies that make it easier for survivors to seek help. Survivors often face difficult decisions about whether to report, whether to seek medical care, and whether to participate in the prosecution of the perpetrator, and the support of family members, friends, and the broader community can make a meaningful difference in the survivor’s recovery.
Anyone who has information about a sexual assault, whether as a witness, a friend of the survivor, or a friend of the suspect, is encouraged to share that information with the investigating agency. In cases like the Foley investigation, additional information from witnesses or from people who had recent contact with the suspect can be valuable in confirming the timeline of events and in identifying potential additional victims. Anonymous tips can be submitted through local Crime Stoppers programs.
South Alabama News will continue to follow this case and will update this story if additional information is released by the Foley Police Department, the Baldwin County District Attorney’s Office, or the courts.