DNA may link rapist to attacks in Bell County Posted On: Sunday, Sep. 20 2009 06:08 AM By Jade Ortego and Victor O'Brien
Killeen Daily Herald

EAST BELL COUNTY – DNA evidence carries the key to a possible link between an east Bell County rapist and six other attacks statewide against elderly women.

A DNA database link connected a Leon County sexual assault from July to one in Lavaca County, from early 2009, Leon County investigator Victor Smith said.

Detectives believe the attacker traveled between Bell, Leon and Lavaca counties or resided in the areas during the past seven months.

Investigators await DNA results, expected in the next few weeks, to confirm a link between all attacks.

Until then residents fear more attacks and multiple attackers.

"The worst case scenario would be two different DNAs," Edwin Pechal, an east Bell County resident said.

Attacks target elderly

Each attack involved a woman over 60 years old that lived alone and resided in a rural area, Smith said.

The attacks victimized two Leon County women, a 77-year-old in July and 80-year-old in September.

A similar sexual assault occurred on Aug. 14 in Zabcikville, a town of about 40 in eastern Bell County along Highway 53 east of Temple.

In early September, a Bell County woman received a phone call asking if she would be home that night. She unthinkingly told the caller she would be, and then had her family take her to their home for the night. The next day, she received a phone call from a man laughing.

The following day, a woman in Leon County was attacked and robbed, but not sexually assaulted.

On Sept. 11, another sexual assault on an elderly woman was reported in Seaton, a small town that borders Zabcikville along Highway 53. The victim's family member reported the attack. The victim's disability prevented investigators from interviewing her and determining if the assault happened Sept. 10 or 11.

"It gets close to home when this last attack happened last Friday," Pechal said.

The attacker appears to be watching the homes and planning the invasions, investigators said.

Darkness hides attacker

The assaults occurred during the night while most women were asleep. The attack stunned the victims who have thus far been unable to provide a detailed description other than an estimated height of six feet tall.

In Leon County, the attacker cut phone lines before he entered. In Zabcikville, he removed the phones from the house and left them outside.

The victims were also robbed, leaving investigators unsure of a motive. The attacker stole mounted deer heads and a wall clock from the Leon County victims, Smith said.

"Things are being stolen, but we're not really sure what the suspect's main purpose is,"

Bell County investigator James Lewing said.

Residents on alert

Investigators are working the case with the Department of Public Safety and federal agencies.

Smith declined to say which federal agency, citing the detail as pertinent to the case.

Bell and Leon County investigators said residents provided tips and leads once word spread. Many people in Zabcikville and Seaton were aware of the crimes, but refused to comment because they are friends of the victims.

The Bell County deputies alerted residents about the attacks on Sept. 11 at a meeting attended by more than 300 residents. Bell County deputies interview residents and watch out for them daily, Pechal said.

"Everybody is at arms about it. I think everyone is more or less watching all older women," Pechal said. "More people have their guns loaded now."

Contact Jade Ortego at jortego@kdhnews.com or (254) 501-7553 and Victor O'Brien at vobrien@kdhnews.com or (254) 501-7468.