FBI offers reward for serial rapist, killer

In hopes of solving a case gone cold, the FBI is offering a $50,000 reward for the arrest and conviction of a serial killer who they believe committed at least 12 homicides, 45 rapes and dozens of burglaries across California in the 1970s and 1980s.

Over the years, the killer has been known by at least four nicknames: the East Area Rapist, the Original Night Stalker, the Diamond Knot Killer and most recently, the Golden State Killer.

Officials say he has been linked through DNA and other evidence to more than 175 crimes committed between 1976 and 1986.

His crime spree began in the Sacramento area, where would break into homes where single women or couples were sleeping. Wearing a mask and armed with a gun, he would tie up the man and pile dishes on his back. He would rape the woman, threatening to kill them if the dishes fell. Similar rapes were committed in Stockton, Modesto and the San Francisco Bay Area.

Investigators believe he is responsible for the 1978 murders of a U.S. Air Force sergeant and his wife.

In 2001, DNA testing linked him to at least six Southern California homicides, and because of similarities to other cases, he’s suspected in another four unsolved Southern California murders.

In addition to the reward for his arrest and conviction, the FBI has launched a new website, https://www.fbi.gov/sacramento, featuring three sketches created by witnesses, maps locating the murders and rapes, video interviews with investigators and audio interviews with two survivors.

Victims describe him as a white male, between 5 foot-8 inches and 5 foot-11 inches tall and weighing 150 to 175 pounds. If he is still alive, he would likely be in his 60s.

Anyone with information about the case is urged to call 800-CALL-FBI.