A registered sex offender in California has been accused of sexually assaulting four women along a popular running trail all while wearing a GPS ankle monitor.
The attacks took place between May 2 and May 6.
“We launched an extensive investigation that had undercover officers on the trail day and night time hours to make sure those citizens were safe, but also give us the best opportunity at catching him,” Nelson said, KABC reported.
A tip from a resident who saw a sketch and surveillance video was instrumental in helping police find and arrest the suspect.
“They were able to find surveillance video. They went out to multiple residents, hundreds of residents, apartment complexes to see if anyone saw this suspect, and we actually did get a tip from the community that led us to the arrest,” Nelson said, KABC reported.
A knife was found at Dandeneau’s home, which investigators believe was used in the attacks.
Police also said they discovered he had been wearing a tracking bracelet on his ankle the entire time. Dandeneau had prior convictions for sexual battery and indecent exposure in San Bernardino County in 2010, according to court records cited by The Sun.
“Once we made the arrest, we realized he was on a GPS monitor tracking system. That tracking system shows him at the crime scenes during the times of the attack and his path away from those scenes,” Nelson said, KABC reported.
The suspect is being held at West Valley Detention Center in Rancho Cucamonga without bail.
The Rialto Police Department has asked other potential victims to come forward and provide information in the investigation, which is ongoing.
Crime in the United States
Violent crime in the United States has fallen sharply over the past 25 years, according to both the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) and the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS).Both studies are based on data up to and including 2017, the most recent year for which complete figures are available.
While the overall rate of violent crime has seen a steady downward drop since its peak in the 1990s, there have been several upticks that bucked the trend.
Property Crime
The property crime rate fell by 50 percent between 1993 and 2017, according to the FBI, and by 69 percent according to BJS.According to the FBI’s preliminary figures for the first half of 2018, property crime rates in the United States dropped by 7.2 percent compared to the same six-month period in 2017.
Public Perception About Crime
Despite falling long-term trends in both violent crime and property crime, opinion surveys repeatedly show Americans believe that crime is up.Perceptions differed on a national versus local level.