DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. (TCN) — An arrest has been made a decade after a teen was sexually assaulted by a man who allegedly lured her to a home by offering her $300 to babysit overnight.
People reports that in June 2016, a 19-year-old woman, whose name has not been released, responded to a Craigslist ad looking for an overnight babysitter. The ad promised $300 to watch the children and offered a rideshare ride to his home.
When the victim got to the house, there were no children there and she was instead met by two men. One of the men, later identified as Julius Hunter, allegedly assaulted and raped her over several hours. She was freed the next day and went to a hospital for a sexual assault exam.
DNA was collected during the exam, but at the time, it did not match anyone in the national CODIS network of DNA databases. It did match two other sexual assault kits collected in 2016 and 2017 in DeKalb and Gwinnett counties in Georgia, according to People.
Hunter had been convicted in a sexual assault case in Florida in 2021 and his DNA was added to CODIS; his DNA was found to be a match in the Craigslist cold case as well as the other two kits taken in 2016 and 2017. Police have not yet connected with the victims in those cases, according to WAGA.
According to DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston, Hunter, 42 was indicted Aug. 11 on charges of rape, sodomy, and aggravated kidnapping.
He was arrested in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on Aug. 13. He was on probation in Florida following the 2021 conviction and was extradited to Georgia.
The additional 2016 and 2017 kits, allegedly matched to Hunter, were similar in pattern to the Craigslist case, according to the DA. Boston said, “The perpetrator lured the victims using Craigslist ads soliciting women for jobs such as babysitting, modeling, dancing, and massages. Some of the victims met him at the same Jolly Avenue apartment. Investigators believe Defendant Hunter may also have additional unknown victims.”
According to WAGA, Hunter is being held without bond.
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