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One criminal has perpetrated six similar, creepy crimes in the past year

Last night’s PSA was a definite sound-alike to the slew of “Cuddler” crimes. And while the culprit in this latest sexual offense, which took place on the 1200 block of 35th Street, may not be the same behind similar crimes, it does call to mind a question: How many times has the criminal who Georgetown students call the “Georgetown Cuddler” struck near our campus?

Six, since January 2008. (We’ve been tracking him for a while, but even we’re surprised.) Yes, the Metropolitan Police Department verified in September that they suspect five different incidences which took place near Georgetown University in the last year to have had the same culprit. And that was before a similar crime with a similarly-described suspect occurred on September 25th, in which an officer said the MPD suspected the same suspect, making six.

If the MPD suspects him last Friday’s incident, too, that would make seven. In chronological order, they occurred on:

• January 13, 2008. “The first incident occurred on January 13, 2008 in the 3700 block of R Street, NW,” MPD 2D officer Helen Andrews wrote in an email to a community listserv.

The email explained that, “The Metropolitan Police Department is currently investigating several sexual assaults in the Second District that may be related …. In each case, a female victim was awakened in the early morning hours by an unknown male suspect who gained entry to their residence by unknown means … The suspect in many of the cases is described as a white or Hispanic male, approximately 5’10″ – 6’0″ in height, with a medium build, wearing dark colored pants and a collared shirt.”

• May 16, 2008, after the Spring semester had officially ended. “The second incident occurred on May 16, 2008 in the 2400 block of Huidekoper Place, NW,” Andrews wrote. DPS did not issue a PSA for this incident as it occurred outside of their purview.

• June 1, 2008. According to GoogleMaps user Markham, the incident took place on the 1900 block of 38th Street, and the MPD has identified it as a crime

• June 26, 2008, “in the 2400 block of Tunlaw Road, NW,” Andrews wrote. Again, DPS did not send a PSA.

• September 5, 2008. A DPS PSA read, “During the overnight hours of Friday, September 5, an unknown male entered [the victim's] bedroom, got into her bed, and put his arm around her. She awoke and got out of the bed. The suspect then left her room and exited the apartment.”

• September 25, 2008. A DPS PSA reads, “An unknown hispanic male entered [the victim's] apartment through an unlocked and ajar door. The suspect took a blanket from a bedroom and put it on top of the complainant, who was sleeping on the couch. He then laid on top of her. The complainant screamed and the suspect immediately left the premises. Vox thought it odd that DPS characterized the incident as a “burglary”

The suspect’s crimes have ranged from creepy to violent—in one incident, he tried to rape his victim.

What most Georgetown students may not know is that the “Cuddler”s crimes may not have begun in the Georgetown area—even his nickname may have originated elsewhere. In an October post, Will Sommer suggested that the University of Maryland had seen similar crimes.

In early March, 2008 the Diamondback reported:

Two women were assaulted in houses along Hopkins Avenue early Sunday by a man county police say they “strongly believe” is related to at least 12 previous sexual assaults and Peeping Tom incidents perpetrated downtown over the past year [emphasis mine].

Another March article indicates the criminal’s nickname etymology:

The crimes may be related to the ‘cuddler’ who has struck downtown in the past. A man has been known to enter unlocked homes and cuddle with women or kiss them while they are sleeping. In one case in September, the man raped a student, police have reported [emphasis mine].

There hasn’t been any news about this perpetrator in the Diamondback since April, 2008. Authorities haven’t made connections between the two criminals yet, and I could not reach MPD by the time of publication.

But whether or not Maryland’s “Cuddler” is the “Georgetown Cuddler,” I have three words for D.C. authorities: Catch this creep.

This entry was posted on Friday, February 13th, 2009 at 12:00 pm and is filed under News, Vox Populi. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.