Police: Three criminals still at large, no suspects

The area around 319 Park Ave. is only a few minutes away from Winthrop’s campus. Photo by John RhodeBy Jonathan McFadden
mcfaddenj@mytjnow.com

Three unidentified criminals responsible for committing separate sets of crimes against two women just steps away from Winthrop’s campus remain at large, according to Campus Police. 

Efforts to reach Brad Redfearn, public affairs officer with the Rock Hill Police Department,  were unsuccessful by press time.

Authorities have yet to locate or identify the man who allegedly abducted a female Winthrop student from University Place’s parking lot, held her at knife-point, forced her to drive them both to an apartment complex away from campus and then raped her in the apartment’s parking lot nearly two months ago. 

Once he finished assaulting her, the rapist told his victim that he had just given her AIDS, according to the incident report.

Last month, The Johnsonian questioned Rock Hill Police, asking authorities if there have been any leads in the case or any suspects arrested. 

 The answer was no.

The Johnsonian asked the same question on Feb. 2.

The answer, again, was no.

Instead, community members called in up to 30 tips and possible leads on suspects to fit the incident report’s description. On Dec. 17, three days after the assault, police released a composite sketch constructed from the victim’s memory of the attack. 

The problem is, even with a sketch, the description is too vague, authorities say.

The victim said her attacker was a black male in his mid-20s with a goatee. He wore a black nylon skullcap, dark jeans and a dark hooded sweatshirt, according to the original incident report.

The police refrained from commenting on any forensic evidence possibly in their possession for fear it could hurt the investigation.

Brad Redfearn, a lieutenant with the Rock Hill Police Department, explained that tracking down a suspect in a case like this isn’t easy. Without any definite ID or facial descriptions, the police are almost searching for a needle in a haystack, Redfearn said.

The crime —classified as a non-acquaintance rape— is also very uncommon in Rock Hill, and in the United States.

National statistics show that 77 percent of completed rapes are committed by “non-strangers.” Similar 2002 statistics from the Illinois Coalition Against Sexual Assault show that a woman is four times more likely to be raped by an acquaintance than a stranger.

Another incident closer to home occurred on a Tuesday in broad daylight. 

 At 3:30 p.m. on Jan. 31, a white non-student female was approached by a black female while she was sitting in her car in the area around 319 Park Ave. The black female, soon joined by a black male, held a handgun at the victim as both subjects entered the backseat of the vehicle, according to an official Rock Hill police report.

They then forced her to drive to a bank and withdraw $300 from a Wells Fargo ATM, according to the report. They then coerced the victim, a Charlotte, N.C. resident, to drive back to the area of Stewart Avenue and Rose Street, where they stole her $200 cell phone. 

They then exited the vehicle and fled on foot, the report says. 

 This victim managed to get a more solid description of her attackers, describing the black male as about six-feet tall, weighing about 170 pounds and wearing a navy blue toboggan, black bandanna, dark colored jeans and a dark colored T-shirt, the report says.

She described the female as weighing between 130- 135 pounds, standing at about 5’2’’ with curly shoulder length hair and wearing a green turtleneck and black jeans.

The area where the incident took place sits across the street from Winthrop. Students were notified of the robbery almost 24 hours after it occurred.

The reason: “We can’t notify students until we are notified,” said Campus Police Chief Frank Zebedis. 

Campus Police did not learn of the robbery until three hours after it occurred, Zebedis said. They also had conflicting information that wasn’t cleared up until the next day, Wednesday.

Accuracy is paramount when sending reports out to the student body, Zebedis implied. 

“If you remember, the rape alert wasn’t sent out until almost 12 hours after it happened when we were notified and could gather the right information,” he said.

Some hours after sending the priority mass e-mail to students, faculty and staff, Zebedis maintained that Winthrop is a safe campus, in spite of the recent incidents.

“The bad guys out there are looking for easy targets. If you appear vulnerable or acting vulnerable you could be setting yourself up to be a victim,” Zebedis said.

Steps to prevent oneself from appearing vulnerable include being “aware of your surroundings, walk in groups, take the headphones and cell phones out of your ears when you are out in public and pay attention, walk in lit areas, if something looks or feels suspicious, report it to Campus Police,” Zebedis said.

Campus Police offers escorts to students at night, while also educating students on how to defend themselves. Such programs include the Rape & Aggression Defense classes offered each semester.