Local

DNA points to only one 'Serial rapist'

Suspect sketch of the alleged serial rapist in Clayton County 

(Clayton County Police Department)

Four attacks in apartments. One at a single-family home. Twice, there were weapons. Police in Clayton County now know they are hunting one serial rapist.

Clayton County Police Sgt. Ashanti Marbury tells WSB that DNA trace evidence processed by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation has linked the sexual assaults on five black women over the course of two years.

The four rapes—and one attempted rape of a woman who managed to get away—date back to July 2015 in Clayton County.

“In every case, we recovered DNA evidence that links to one male,” says Sgt. Marbury. “It’s particularly important for us because initially detectives did not believe that any of the cases were linked together just because the method that was being used by the suspect was ever-changing.”

The last known assault by this suspect was in May of 2017.

“In a few of the cases, he entered the residence through an open or an unsecured window,” explains Marbury. “In another situation, he accosted his victim as she was walking to her apartment. In one other situation, he knocked on the door of a victim and asked for a wrong name—just a random person— and when she opened the door, he forced his way in.

Marbury says most of the women lived in multi-family dwellings—apartment or townhome complexes. All are African American. Two were able to give police enough of a description that they were able to produce composite sketches.

“We did notice there is similarity to the sketches that were done at different times by different women. So, we are hoping that someone will recognize or even see a similarity in the person to someone they know, and give us that information, “says Sgt. Marbury.

Since 13 months have passed since this suspect’s last known assault, is it possible that the man is already behind bars?

“We know that he’s not been processed into the Georgia prison system, because when you go into the state prison system, automatically they collect a sample of your DNA, and that would’ve given us our suspect. But on a local level, if you’re in and out of a local jail, they don’t usually collect your DNA for any reason there,” she says.

It’s also possible that a subsequent attack may not have left DNA that has been processed yet—or left DNA at all.

Marbury says it’s not known whether the suspect sought out the women specifically or whether they were all crimes of opportunity.

All of the cases were being investigated separately. Now, the five will come under the review of one detective.

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