Male-Stalking Rapist Puzzles Experts
A rapist who has struck at least five times since April has not only spread fear in this working-class community but also piqued the interest of those who study the criminal mind.
The reason: He preys on other men.
That makes him something of a rarity in the world of crime.
"It's the least prevalent kind of serial rape, and largely underreported,'' said Jack Levin, a leading criminologist and director of the Brudnick Center on Violence at Northeastern University in Boston.
Levin and other experts say male-on-male rape sometimes stems from sexual encounters gone bad. But that does not appear to be the case with the rapist in this oil-refining town of 70,000 people about 30 miles east of Houston.
Instead, he methodically identifies and stalks young men and attacks them at gunpoint or knifepoint in or near their homes, according to police Capt. Roger Clifford. Sometimes he robs his victims, too, but rape appears to be the primary motivation, police said.
"This is certainly of interest, an interesting case,'' Levin said.
The U.S. Justice Department says one in 33 men in the United States has been a victim of a rape or attempted rape, compared with one in six women. Experts say men are far less likely to report a rape to authorities, because they fear being perceived as weak or see the attack as an assault on their masculinity.
In fact, investigators in Baytown fear there may be other victims of the rapist who are too ashamed to come forward.
"There's a lot of emotional damage that goes with being raped, especially when the victims are men,'' said Lynn Parrish, a spokeswoman for the National Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network. But she added: "The best way to get this rapist off the street is for more people to come forward."
Three of the attacks have occurred in the city, the other two on the outskirts of town. The most recent attack was Nov. 30. Clifford would not give details of the rapes but said at least one victim managed to thwart the attack.
No one has been seriously hurt.
In the first assault the attacker wore a mask, the Houston Chronicle reported, but he has not worn any disguises since, investigators said. The attacker vanishes as quickly as he arrives, investigators said, taking with him any valuables he can find — from cash and ATM cards to laptop computers and jewelry.
Victims have described the attacker as a clean-shaven, light-skinned black man, 18-21 years old, between 5-foot-6-inches and 6-foot tall and with a shaved head. Although some victims reported seeing a silver sports-utility vehicle nearby, police are unsure whether the vehicle belongs to the suspect.
Criminologists have seen cases of serial killers who raped or otherwise had sex with their male victims, among them, John Wayne Gacy and Jeffrey Dahmer. But psychologically, this is a different phenomenon.
Levin said it is rare for a serial rapist to become a serial killer.
"I think the reason has to do with the absence or presence of a conscience," he said. "A serial rapist is more likely to have a conscience. Otherwise they'd take the life and silence the victim."