Serial Rapist Strikes Again

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Another police sketch of the Chandler, Ariz. rape suspect.

On June 8, 2007, cops in Chandler, Ariz. received a burglary-in-progress call to the Kon Tiki Motor Home Park located at 555 West Warner Road.  The caller told authorities that they believed the perpetrator was none other than the unknown serial child rapist who has been terrorizing Chandler for over a year. 

Detectives set up a perimeter around the area but somehow the suspect escaped -- and tragically not before he sexually assaulted his fifth victim...a 14-year-old girl.  This incident varied from the unknown assailant's previous assaults in that the girl was attacked at night while her grandparents were at home.  

Cops described the suspect as a Hispanic male in his thirties, 5'6", muscular build, thin moustache, black hair.  He reportedly wore a short-sleeved navy blue sweatshirt and khaki-colored pants.  The victim told police that she was threatened with a weapon. 

Man Rapes Girl In Her Own Bed

In his third attack since January of 2007, an unknown assailant has raped another young teenage girl in Chandler, Ariz.  On March 23, 2007, at 7:00 in the morning, a 13-year-old girl was safely sleeping in her bed when a mysterious man gained entry to her home and raped her. The girl's mother had just left for work when the suspect entered the house and threatened the young girl with a weapon. The girl's younger brother was just down the hall when the attack occurred. Luckily, he was not harmed.

The young victim believes that the man who raped her was the same man who entered her home about a month ago and told her that her neighbor's house was on fire. He left the house but then reappeared to tell her the fire was a false alarm. Then -- he vanished again. A strange vehicle was also seen loitering in the area about three weeks before the attack. It was a white, Ford F-150 four door pick-up truck with tinted windows and Arizona tags. 

Two Related Cases

Investigators believe that this attack may be linked to two other rapes that occurred in the same neighborhood in January of 2007. On January 16, another 13-year-old girl was raped and on January 31, a 14-year-old girl was also raped. Like the most recent attack, these two victims were attacked in their own homes shortly after the parents left the house. Police say that the January attacks have definitely been linked by physical evidence. However, they are not releasing the type of physical evidence that was found. The attack on March 23 is very similar to the others and police believe that the rapist is the same man.

The three cases share many similarities -- all three victims were either raped in their bedrooms or foyers and the attacker threatens the girls with a weapon. And -- he always manages to escape. All three of the attacks occurred within a 1.5 mile stretch of McQueen Road and the victims were from single-parent families. Police believe that the rapes are premeditated and that the attacker is selecting the girls in advance. He knows when the victims will be alone and he assaults them shortly after a parent leaves for work.

Two of the victims were able to see their attacker and give detailed descriptions of what he was wearing. On the January 31 attack, he sported faded blue jeans and tan work boots that had fresh paint drops on them. During his most recent attack, he wore black jeans, a long-sleeved white shirt, and white tennis shoes. The serial rapist speaks English but has a Spanish accent.

Fourth Possible Victim Discovered

A 12-year-old girl has come forward about an assault that occurred on June 4, 2006. She is believed to be the first victim in a string of sexual attacks that have been occurring in the Chandler, Ariz. area. Chandler Police spokesman, Sgt. Rick Griner, said the attack occurred sometime between 6:00 and 6:30 in the morning -- after the girl's father left for work. Sgt. Griner said that the girl came forward with the information in February and reported the incident "out of fear."  Police believed that the attacks began in January 2007 but new evidence showed that the serial rapist may have started his spree almost a year before.

Chandler Cops Nab 'Serial' Suspect

For months, police have been combing the area around where the Chandler serial rapist last appeared in November of 2007.  On January 11, 2008, they had a major break in the case when a vehicle linked to the suspect was spotted.  Cops tell AMW that they noticed a white Toyota Tercel in the vicinity and the man driving the vehicle matched accounts of what the suspect looked like.

Cops stopped the car and began questioning 39-year-old Santana Batiz Aceves, who initially gave police a false name and forged documents.  While Aceves was released, police obtained a warrant to search his home and obtain his DNA.  When they arrived at Aceves' residence, he tried to flee.  He was taken into custody and charged with giving police false information and providing forged documents.  Authorities tell AMW that inside Aceves' home was evidence that gave a strong indication that he was involved in the string of child sexual assaults, but it was the DNA evidence that would positively link him to three of the attacks. 

On January 12, 2008, Chandler police announced that an arrest had been made in the case.  Aceves was booked into Maricopa County jail in Phoenix and currently faces 47 charges including child molestation, aggravated assault, kidnapping, sexual assault, and trespassing. 

Police say that Aceves lived in a rented home located near two Chandler area junior high schools and within a 2-mile radius of all the attacks.