The Region : Transient Held in Rapes

A transient arrested for allegedly attempting to rape a woman in a downtown Los Angeles parking structure may be the same man who raped and robbed three other women in similar locations earlier this year, authorities said. Keith Roland, 29, was arrested after security guards recognized him from a police composite drawing, Los Angeles Police Lt. Don Foster said. Roland had allegedly attempted to rape a woman earlier in a parking structure at 8th and Francisco streets, but the woman escaped, Foster said. In the three other assaults, the assailant approached his victims from behind, displayed a weapon, and forced the women to accompany him to a secluded stairwell, where he raped them before taking money and jewelry, Foster said. Police said Roland was recently paroled from prison after serving a sentence for kidnaping.