The Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office is expected to make a "major announcement" Wednesday related to the East Area Rapist case, according to NBC affiliate KCRA. The case has ties to Santa Barbara County.
The Sacramento Bee is reporting an arrest has been made and that a source has told them "the suspect has been living in the Sacramento area and was identified after a renewed push of the investigation."
The East Area Rapist, also known as the Golden State Killer, is described by the FBI as "a violent serial burglar, rapist, and murderer who terrorized multiple communities in California throughout the 1970s and 1980s."
The FBI says DNA or other details of the crimes have linked 12 homicides, approximately 45 rapes and multiple residential burglaries throughout California to him.
Four of those homicides occurred in Santa Barbara County. The East Area rapist is also believed to be responsible for two attempted homicides in Santa Barbara County.
From June 1976 to February 1978, he was active in the greater Sacramento area, according to the FBI, which states his victims ranged in age from 13 to 41. They included couples, women who were home alone and women at home with their children.
In 2016, the FBI announced a $50,000 reward to identify the East Area Rapist, who could be in his 60s or 70s by now.
This story will be updated when new information becomes available.
