Ex-cop arrested as suspect in serial murder-rapes
A 72-year-old ex-cop has been arrested in a decadeslong search for the Golden State Killer who terrorized California communities in the 1970s and ’80s with a series of murders and rapes, authorities said Wednesday.
Sacramento police arrested Joseph James DeAngelo in connection with the infamous cases, Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones announced at a news conference.
The masked killer, also known as the East Area Rapist and the Original Night Stalker, is believed to have killed 12 people, raped 45 and ransacked more than 100 homes.
Sacramento County jail records show DeAngelo was arrested and charged early Wednesday with two counts of murder.
FBI and California officials last year renewed their search for a suspect in the cases and announced a $50,000 reward for an arrest and conviction.
Armed with a gun, the masked rapist would break into homes while the occupants were sleeping. He would tie up the man and pile dishes on his back, then rape the woman while threatening to kill them both if the dishes tumbled.
He often took souvenirs from his victims, who ranged in age from 13 to 41.
The Sacramento Bee reported that DeAngelo lived there for at least two decades. The newspaper also reported that he was fired from the Auburn Police Department in California in 1979 after being charged with shoplifting.