DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Police in Daytona Beach say they've arrested a serial rapist wanted in connection to several attacks across the area in the past decade.
- Daytona Beach Police: Rapes occurred over an almost 10-year period
- Police chief: Markeith Martin was homeless, violently attacked woman
- DNA from August 2018 case led investigators to Martin, cops say
The suspect was arrested Friday, they said.
They said investigators used DNA evidence to link Markeith Martin to five rape cases in Daytona Beach.
Daytona Beach Police Chief Craig Capri said during a news conference that investigators have connected Martin to rapes and sexual assaults in 2010, 2014 — for which he spent 37 months in jail — 2017, and two in 2018.
Capri said Martin was homeless and wasn't on investigators' radar until they got DNA evidence from a case from August 2018.
He said Martin was violent in his assaults, strangling some of his victims and threatening to stab them if they resisted.
Capri said police have notified one of his alleged victims, and she’s finally feeling relief.
"She's extremely pleased at this point in time," Capri said. "(She's relieved) that this guy is no longer on the streets, (and) he's been taken into custody. It took some time, but you have to wait for DNA to come back, you have to get the match, you have to put it together.
"We got notified Wednesday, I believe, and (in) a little over 48 hours, he's confessed to this. He's put himself at the crime scene," Capri said.
According to Capri, Martin was arrested 44 times before this most recent arrest. He was also convicted of sexual assault and served prison time for it in 2014.
Capri is encouraging any other potential victims to come forward.
Martin is expected to go before a judge Saturday.
