Serial rapist poses as cop, BIA warns Whiteriver

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Serial rapist poses as cop, BIA warns Whiteriver
Dennis Wagner
The Arizona Republic
Sept. 27, 2006 07:24 PM
www.azcentral.com/12news/news/articles/0927reservation-ON-CP.html
<http://www.azcentral.com/12news/news/articles/0927reservation-ON-CP.htm\
l> A serial rapist who poses as a police officer has sexually
assaulted at least a half dozen women on the Fort Apache Indian
Reservation, traumatizing the community of Whiteriver.

Warren Youngman, assistant special agent in charge for Bureau of Indian
Affairs law enforcement in the state, said the suspect accosts women in
darkness wearing a police shirt and cap, then tells them they are under
arrest and places them in handcuffs before raping them.

"We need to get this guy," Youngman said. "The communities along the
trail are just shutting down. Everybody's afraid to go out at night . .
. (And) he's caused a lot of mistrust toward law enforcement officers."
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Youngman declined to say whether the women were beaten or otherwise
injured beyond the sexual assaults.

Because victims were approached in an unlit area, victims have been able
to provide only a sketchy description of the perpetrator: Native
American, age 20 to 40, with short hair. Accounts of his height and
weight vary too greatly to be useful for identification.

Youngman said the assaults, which began in March, occur along a dirt
path between two housing areas. "As close as people are in these
communities, someone knows who this person is," he added.

A $10,000 reward has been posted, and anyone with information is asked
to call Silent Witness at 1-800-343-TIPS.

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Tribal authorities identify four more serial rapist victims Associated
Press Tucson, Arizona | Published: 10.05.2006
www.azstarnet.com/sn/hourlyupdate/149700.php
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8.htm> WHITERIVER �" Bureau of Indian Affairs police say
they've identified four additional victims of a serial rapist posing as
a police officer and attacking women and girls on the Fort Apache
Reservation. A BIA special agent says the task force canvassing the
neighborhood where the attacks occurred found victims who did not come
forward because they thought their attacker was a police officer.
Authorities say the situation has created an atmosphere of fear with
people afraid of police officers. Since March, nine girls and one young
woman have been attacked on a trail between two housing projects. The
suspect is believed to be American Indian, 20 to 40 years old and of
medium height and build. The victims say the attacker wears a dark shirt
and a dark baseball cap, both bearing ''police.''

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11th rape victim found on reservation

� 2006 The Associated Press

WHITERIVER, Ariz. - Officials have found an 11th victim of a rapist on the Fort Apache Reservation who poses as a police officer before he attacks girls and young women.

"We didn't think we were going to have an 11th victim," said Warren Youngman, an agent with the Bureau of Indian Affairs. "Tomorrow, we could get another call saying there's another."

BIA investigators received an anonymous phone call about another possible victim and confirmed Thursday that the man raped the girl in May, Youngman said. Like most of the other victims, the girl did not come forward because she believed her attacker really was a police officer.
All were attacked between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. on a trail. The rapist wears a dark shirt and cap bearing the word "police," tells the girls they are under arrest, handcuffs them and rapes them, Youngman said. The earliest known victim was raped in March. The most recent rape was Sept. 6.

"We didn't think we were going to have an 11th victim," Youngman said. "Tomorrow, we could get another call saying there's another."

Nine victims are younger than 18, though Youngman won't reveal the age of the youngest, saying it could compromise the investigation. The oldest victim is 20.

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Man held in Apache rape spree
Dennis Wagner
The Arizona Republic
Oct. 14, 2006 12:00 AM
www.azcentral.com/news//articles/1014apache1014.html
<http://www.azcentral.com/news//articles/1014apache1014.html>

A 29-year-old member of the White Mountain Apache Tribe was arrested
Friday in connection with a serial-rape spree committed by a man posing
as a police officer.

The arrest prompted tribal leaders to ask for healing and to remind the
community that the investigation is not over.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs said Jimi Aday was taken into custody on
the Fort Apache Reservation and is being held on one count of kidnapping
and two counts of aggravated sexual contact.
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To date, 13 teenage girls have disclosed that they were assaulted.

Investigators did not reveal what information led them to Aday or
whether they have obtained DNA evidence from any victims.

Chris Chaney, deputy director of the BIA, stressed that Aday has been
charged only in connection with two assaults, adding, "We're not sure
who is responsible for the others."

W. Patrick Ragsdale, BIA director, said in a news release that the
arrest does not end the rape investigation.

"We are extremely pleased with our law enforcement officers and the
cooperation of the tribal community . . . to apprehend the suspect who
is now in custody," Ragsdale said.

Task force still operating "The task force is still operational,
however, because we are not convinced the investigation is complete."

Federal authorities continue to withhold many details of the
investigation.

Wyn Hornbuckle, a U.S. Attorney's Office spokesman, said Aday was
expected to have an appearance Friday night at federal court in
Flagstaff.

Aday, who is not a law enforcement officer, was convicted in April of
shoplifting in the Pinetop-Lakeside area, according to court records. He
also has a number of traffic violations statewide. There is no
indication of a felony criminal history.

The 21-month spree of sexual assaults spread fear and confusion in
Whiteriver, the tribal capital.

In a written statement, tribal Vice Chairwoman Margaret Baha-Walker
said, "The safety of Apache women on our reservation has been of the
utmost concern for me. . . . I urge the community to remain steadfast in
prayer as we begin a healing journey."

The serial rapist stalked girls along an unlit footpath linking several
housing developments.

Victims too frightened The attacks began in January 2005, but
investigators did not learn about them until last month because victims,
who believed the assailant was a law enforcement officer, were too
frightened to report them.

After two girls came forward in August, 11 more victims notified
authorities or were contacted by investigators who canvassed the
community.

Chaney said Whiteriver residents provided more than 350 phone tips.

He encouraged additional victims and witnesses to contact federal agents
or call 1-480-WITNESS.

Meanwhile, BIA police officers will continue to patrol the path at night
riding ATVs.

Housing tracts in the area bear names suggestive of Apache humor:
Lifesaver Subdivision features brightly colored homes; Bengay
Subdivision has numerous elderly residents; One Step Beyond Subdivision
is next to a graveyard.

The rapist wore a shirt and cap bearing a police insignia and spoke into
what appeared to be a radio after pretending to arrest his victims.

Because the attacks occurred in darkness, agents obtained no useful
description of the perpetrator.

Victims were placed in wrist restraints and led to a vacant building.

A 2004 Justice Department study says, Native American women are
victimized by rape at more than twice times the rate of non-Indians.