Arrest Made In Ft. Lauderdale Sexual Battery
Follow CBSMIAMI.COM: Facebook | Twitter
FT LAUDERDALE (CBSMiami) - Nearly two weeks after a woman was sexually battered in front of Ft. Lauderdale apartment complex an arrest has been made in the case.
James Hodge, 41, has been charged in the attack that happened on October 5th on Middle River Drive near 26th Street.
The woman told investigators she was walking toward Oakland Park Boulevard around 1:30 a.m. when a man tackled her and then sexually battered her on the front lawn of an apartment complex. He then ran off.
Syra Seda, who lives nearby, said she heard a woman's screams at the exact same time the attack happened.
"We heard somebody screaming, a woman screaming," said Seda. "But we did not look out. It wasn't a continuous scream. It was one big long scream. If it was something continuous, I would have tried to look out. But it was not."
"The victim attempted to call for help and she was knocking on doors when police arrived," said Det. Tracy Figone.
Days later, police handed out flyers with a sketch of the man, hoping someone had seen him or knew who he was.
During Hodge's first appearance before a judge Thursday morning, Assistant State Attorney Eric Linder made an usual move by presenting DNA evidence taken from the woman that he said points to Hodge.
"The odds of it being someone else is one in four hundred billion where there aren't that many people on the planet," said Linder.
Hodge is facing three counts including sexual battery by force. Bond was set at $750,000.
A check of court records shows he's a registered sex offender who was convicted of assault 15 years ago.
