Potomac River Rapist

The Potomac River Rapist refers to a serial rapist and murderer who was active in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area from 1991 to 1998. Ten sexual assaults and one murder were linked to the suspect by DNA. In November 2019, a suspect identified as Giles Daniel Warrick (October 16, 1959 – November 19, 2022)[2] was arrested and charged in connection with the rapes and murder.[3]

Suspected Potomac River Rapist
1998 sketch of the suspect
Born(1959-10-16)October 16, 1959[1]
DiedNovember 19, 2022(2022-11-19) (aged 63)[2]
D.C. Central Detention Facility,[2] Washington, D.C.[2]
Years active1991-1998
Details
Victims10 raped, 1 murdered
Date apprehended
November 13, 2019 (suspect)

Crimes

The perpetrator is known to be responsible for ten sexual assaults on girls and women, one of which ended in murder.[4][5] Each of the attacks have been linked by DNA:[6][7]

Sexual Assaults
#DateLocation
1Monday, May 6, 1991Gaithersburg, Maryland
2Thursday, Sep 5, 1991Germantown, Maryland[8]
3Thursday, Nov 21, 1991Bethesda, Maryland
4Wednesday, Dec 11, 1991North Potomac, Maryland
5Friday, Jan 24, 1992North Potomac, Maryland
6Tuesday, March 8, 1994Rockville, Maryland
7Saturday, July 20, 1996The Palisades, Washington, D.C.[7]
8Wednesday, Feb 26, 1997Rockville, Maryland
9Friday, Nov 14, 1997Silver Spring, Maryland
10Saturday, Aug 1, 1998Georgetown, Washington, D.C.

Murder of Christine Mirzayan
Refer to caption
Map of crimes committed by the Potomac River Rapist

On August 1, 1998, at around 10:30 to 11 pm EDT, Christine Mirzayan was walking home in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. when she was dragged into the woods.[9] Mirzayan yelled out and a man responded, asking if she was okay. There was no response from Mirzayan so the man continued on. The next day, she was found raped and murdered by a blow to the head.[7] The police asked for the public's help after the murder and another person who had heard Mirzayan scream during the murder came forward and provided law enforcement with a description of a man who they saw running out of the woods moments after the scream. This description was enough to provide the public with a composite sketch of the suspect.[10]

Investigation

In 2011, the Federal Bureau of Investigation launched a new website in an attempt to bring public attention to the cold case. The site includes a podcast about the crimes, videos, and other information about the case.[5]

Police requested help from Parabon Nanolabs genetic genealogy team who used DNA from the crime scenes to create a family tree for the perpetrator. Parabon suggested five possible suspects to the police and on November 13, 2019, they arrested one of them, Giles Warrick, a 60-year-old man from Conway, South Carolina, who had worked as a landscaper in Maryland at the time of the rapes and murder. He was subsequently charged in connection with the crimes.[11][12][13]

On November 19, 2022, the Metropolitan Police Department reported that Warrick had been found dead in his cell in the D.C. Central Detention Facility. Officials believed that Warrick, whose trial was scheduled to begin that month, took his own life.[14]

See also

References
  1. "Affidavit in Support of an Arrest Warrant" (PDF). Superior Court of the District of Columbia. Retrieved November 25, 2022.
  2. "Alleged 'Potomac River rapist' found dead in jail awaiting trial". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2022-11-21.
  3. Swalec, rea; Staff, NBC Washington (14 November 2019). "Suspected Potomac River Rapist Arrested". NBC4 Washington. Retrieved 2019-11-14.
  4. Babay, Emily (2012-06-14). "10th attack from 1990s linked to Potomac River Rapist". Washington Examiner. Retrieved 2018-05-01.
  5. Duggan, Paul (2011-12-15). "Digital blitz launched against '90s D.C. area serial rapist". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2018-05-01.
  6. "Potomac River Rapist Map and Timeline". Federal Bureau of Investigation. Retrieved 2018-05-01.
  7. Williams, Clarence (2012-06-14). "Potomac River Rapist linked to 1996 attack in the District". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2018-05-01.
  8. "Victim of Potomac River Rapist Hopes Her Story Helps Others". NBC4 Washington. Retrieved 2018-05-01.
  9. Donelan, Jennifer. "Potomac River Rapist; 17 years later, where the FBI stands". WJLA. Retrieved 2018-05-01.
  10. Wu, June Q. (2011-07-25). "D.C. police renew efforts to find man who killed Christine Mirzayan in 1998". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2018-05-01.
  11. Domen, John (2019-11-14). "Suspected 'Potomac River Rapist' arrested for attacks in the 1990s". WTOP. Retrieved 2019-12-29.
  12. Swalec, Andrea (2019-11-14). "Suspected Potomac River Rapist, Who Terrorized DC Area in the '90s, Arrested". NBC4 Washington. Retrieved 2019-12-29.
  13. Hermann, Peter (2019-11-14). "Police arrest alleged 'Potomac River Rapist' linked to attacks in Maryland and Georgetown". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2019-12-29.
  14. Wells, Clara (2022-11-19). "'Potomac River Rapist' suspect found dead in DC jail cell". WTOP. Retrieved 2022-11-19.


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