Awwal 30, 1432 H/March 5, 2011, SPA -- Authorities in New Haven, Conn., have detained a man they think is the "East Coast Rapist." New Haven police spokesman Joe Avery said Friday, according to UPI, that detectives from Connecticut, Maryland and Virginia were questioning the suspect, Aaron H. Thomas, 39, The Hartford (Conn.) Courant reported Saturday. The "East Coast Rapist" is responsible for 17 violent attacks on women between 1997 and 2009, including one in New Haven, where Thomas now lives. Investigators acting on a tip tracked Thomas for several days and followed him to Superior Court in New Haven, where he had a court date on a larceny charge. Thomas was smoking and tossed a cigarette butt on the ground near the courthouse. Authorities retrieved the cigarette butt and rushed it through DNA testing. The tests determined the DNA on the cigarette butt matched DNA left by the rapist in Virginia. The U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force took Thomas into custody Friday. Authorities in Prince William County, Va., said they have issued an arrest warrant for Thomas, suspected of a rape there. DNA evidence in each of the reported rapes indicated the same person committed all of the assaults.
