Officially Chicago police are only saying that man is wanted for questioning. But his arrest by federal marshals in Indiana has many on the South Side feeling relieved.
The man is accused of sexually assaulting a woman and her adult daughter during a home invasion in the Fernwood neighborhood before assaulting a girl who was walking to a bus stop in nearby Washington Heights in the early morning on Wednesday, October 9.
"I was one of the first ones to see the girl. She was terrified. And getting that vision out of my head has been kind of hard. But this will help the situation if they caught the guy," Matthew Cooper, Washington Heights resident, said.
"I'm glad that he is in custody, and people can probably rest a little bit easier today," Chrystele Johnson, Fernwood resident, said.
The man, who has yet to be charged, was arrested by U.S. Marshals in Lafayette, Ind., police said. He fits the description in the sketch officials released last week after the attacks, police said, and is known around the neighborhoods, residents said. Chicago police say they are awaiting that man's extradition from Indiana, and would only say he is wanted for questioning.
"It's a relief because I walk. I take public transportation to school and to work, so it's a relief to know somebody is in custody," Shanice Roberts, Fernwood resident, said.
Between the sexual assaults, the same man is also believed to have broken into Edward Whiten's home. The man was scared off by a barking dog and Whiten's daughter, who screamed.
"I'm just hoping that this is the right person, and everything matches up and they got the person who committed those heinous acts. And if it is, I know me and my family can rest a lot easier knowing that this person is locked up," Whiten said.
The man in custody has not been charged at this time, and so we're not identifying him. Chicago police on Tuesday night are are still awaiting his extradition from Indiana.
