Police Form Task Force to Hunt for Serial Rapist

A serial rapist sought in a string of assaults in Santa Ana struck twice more this week, prompting police to launch a special task force Wednesday to help detectives hunt for the sexual predator.

The man, believed to be in his early 20s, has lurked at night in the carports of gated apartment buildings near 17th Street, watching women before eventually choosing to strike, Santa Ana Police Sgt. Raul Luna said.

The latest assaults, both Tuesday night, bring the number of women attacked over the last two months to six, Luna said.

Investigators said that in nearly every attack, the rapist has drawn a knife and threatened to kill his target. Then, he has walked the victim to a secluded area of the complex, where he assaults her.

“We have a sexual predator on the loose,” Luna said. “This guy is hitting places where people might have a false sense of security.”

Detectives have linked the cases from similarities between the attacks, physical evidence from the crime scenes and victim identifications, Luna said. The victims are between 21 and 32 years old.

Investigators are pursuing more than a dozen leads developed over the last week but have no suspects, Luna said.

Detectives are surprised the attacks have continued given recent publicity about them. Last week, police distributed a likeness of the man after linking the assaults. Officers also warned nearby residents.

Frustrated, police on Wednesday took the rare step of forming a task force of 30 officers and detectives to find the rapist. The effort, usually reserved for high-profile murders or abductions, triples the number of officers working the case.

Police declined to give exact locations of the assaults. But investigators said the attacks occurred as the victims walked alone in gated apartment complexes along 17th Street between Fairview Street and the Santa Ana Freeway.

Rodolfo Vesina, whose family lives a few blocks from 17th Street, has noticed the increased police patrols.

“It’s very good. . . . If they get out of their cars and into the streets, they’ll get him sooner or later,” he said.

Police have speculated that the rapist enters the gated complexes by jumping over fences or walking in behind cars.

Until this week, the rapist only targeted women during predawn hours. But on Tuesday evening, he struck first around 9:30 p.m. In that attack, the victim successfully fought off the man.

Less than a mile away, the same man struck again 45 minutes later, police said. In the second assault, his victim was raped.

Police described the assailant as Latino, 20 to 25 years old, about 5 feet 7 inches and 150 pounds. He has a light complexion and slicked-back, black hair.

During the first two attacks, which occurred July 14 and Aug. 18, the rapist wore a mustache. By the next two, both on Sept. 10, the rapist was clean-shaven, Luna said.

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Times staff writer Richard Marosi contributed to this report.