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7th Rape Charge Added

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By THOMAS W. KRAUSE and PETER BERNARD, The Tampa Tribune News Channel 8

Published: October 27, 2007

TAMPA - A man charged and jailed in connection with six Tampa rapes was charged Friday in a seventh, which involves a 10-year-old girl.
Tampa police say Jerrod Pass climbed through an open bedroom window Aug. 18 and sexually assaulted the North Tampa girl. She was asleep when the intruder broke in.

As in the six previous cases, DNA evidence linked Pass, 38, to the crime. In the earlier cases, the victims were between 16 and 37 years old.

'The age of the victim was entirely different,' said Tampa police Sgt. Paul Mumford. 'We just kind of went on a hunch that it might be the same individual. We submitted the DNA evidence and it came back as a positive match.'

Despite the age of the latest victim, authorities will not necessarily expand their search to include young girls, Mumford said.

'We're looking at every possible victim out there,' Mumford said.

Investigators remain focused on the manner and circumstances in which the crimes were committed, Mumford said. These include unlocked or partially open windows in the victims' homes and traces of Pass' strong, distinct odor, Mumford said.

'We don't know why he chose this particular victim' when the others were older, Mumford said. 'We're pretty confident that if there are other victims out there, we'll identify them.'

In addition to the charges related to the seven rapes, Pass of Clewiston also faces charges in the attempted rape of an eighth woman and a related burglary. In all, he faces 39 felony charges and the investigation is continuing.

Pass is being held without bail at Falkenburg Road Jail.

'It's a real good feeling to know that this individual is off the street,' Mumford said. 'That he is not going to be doing this to anybody else and I doubt that he will ever see the light of day again.'

All the crimes connected to Pass occurred in the area about two miles west of the University of South Florida during 2003, 2004 and this year, investigators said. He had apparently left Tampa for three years.

Local sex-crimes investigators said they have issued a nationwide alert through an FBI system to learn whether Pass has victimized women beyond the Bay area.

In almost all the Tampa rapes, investigators said, the attacker targeted young black mothers. He entered through open windows or doors in the late-night or early morning hours and often threatened to come back and kill their children if the victim called for help.

Hillsborough County sheriff's detectives had been questioning people in the area of the rapes who matched the attacker's description - a black male with a dark complexion and scars on his left arm, near the wrist. The victims also said their attacker had a foul odor.

Pass was questioned by deputies about 3 a.m. Aug. 28. He was one of about 50 men questioned that week, detectives said. Pass voluntarily gave a DNA sample when asked. Last month, a crime lab linked his DNA to one of the rapes and he was arrested. Further tests linked him to additional rapes.

Investigators have recovered from Pass' storage unit items that belonged to some of the victims, including panties, purses, mail, driver's licenses and identification cards.

'There's no doubt in my mind,' Mumford said, 'that if he had not been caught, that he would continue to rape now, in the future and for a long time until he was caught.'

Tribune reporter Ray Reyes contributed to this report. Reporter Thomas W. Krause can be reached at (813)259-7698 or tkrause@tampatrib.com.

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