Boy, 16, arrested for ‘raping two women in brutal attack that rattled small Arizona community’
- Boy not named because it remains unclear if is to be tried as an adult or juvenile
- Police were led to suspect from a tip-off within the local community
- Suspect’s DNA was already in the police database due to a criminal past
- Both incidents involved attacking women in their own homes
- Police previously exonerated a 22 year old man in relation to the crimes
A teenager from Scottsdale, Arizona has been arrested for allegedly raping two women, including a neighbor who lives in his apartment building.
DNA evidence linked the 16-year-old boy to the assaults, which happened one week apart on Oct. 18 and Oct. 24, police said.
The boy’s name has not been released because he is a juvenile and it has not yet been determined whether he will be tried as an adult.
Police said the suspect entered an apartment in the Camden San Paloma apartment complex through an unlocked patio door
He is being held on sexual assault, kidnapping and burglary charges, and police believe he may be connected to more crimes in the area, according to a local Arizona television station, KPHO CBS 5.
Police were led to the suspect through a tip from the Scottsdale community, according to Sgt. Mark Clark of the Scottsdale police department.
The suspect’s DNA was already in the police agency’s database because he has a criminal past that includes crimes related to the ones he is currently being held for.
Authorities did not provide any further details on the boy’s former crimes.
They said DNA testing is ongoing, as police collected additional samples from the suspect’s home through a search warrant.
DNA samples that were on file have already been linked to both assaults.
The victims of the rapes could not identify the boy in a line-up of suspects, but police say there are some similarities between his appearance and a composite sketch of the suspect that was drawn with the help of the first victim’s description of her attacker.Â
In both attacks, the assailant entered first-floor apartments through unlocked patio doors of women who live alone.
In the first assault, which happened at 11 p.m. on October 18, the assailant entered an apartment naked and raped the 49-year-old woman living there, who had just finished showering.
He later fled, still wearing no clothes. The second assault occurred at an apartment building across the street around 11:30 p.m. on October 24.
The victim, 29, was sitting on a couch near the door in a nightgown when the assailant broke in, police said.
On Thursday, the day before police arrested the teenager, authorities exonerated a 22-year-old man who was previously arrested for the same crimes.
Police said forensic evidence did not match DNA samples collected from the crime scene.
The entire community has been on watch as the investigation has been ongoing, with police urging resident to keep their doors and windows locked and their blinds drawn.
The suspect was described as a black male about 5-feet, 7-inches tall who has an athletic build.