‘Serial rapist’ indicted in cold cases after lying on firearm form, Virginia cops say
A man accused of a series of rapes over a decade ago has been indicted after officials say he was caught lying on a firearm form, news outlets report.
William L. Phelps IV, 33, now faces indictment on 27 charges, including abduction with intent to defile, rape by force and use of a firearm during a felony, court records show.
Phelps was first arrested on unrelated charges in August after police said he had given a false statement on a form when he was trying to buy a gun, The Virginian-Pilot reported.
Norfolk police said they then collected DNA from Phelps that linked him to rapes from 2008, according to WAVY.
“During the investigation, forensic evidence revealed that the same suspect was involved in two other rapes in the City of Norfolk as well as one in the City of Chesapeake,” police said in an October news release.
Phelps was charged as a “serial rapist” by the Norfolk Police Department in October and denied bond, according to the news release.
In January 2008, two teenage girls were abducted at gunpoint while walking to their bus stop, and police said they believe Phelps led them behind a shed and raped them, WAVY reported.
After Phelps’ initial arrest, a Norfolk police spokesperson told The Virginian-Pilot that police “believe that Phelps has committed more sex crimes.”
Police began looking at other sex crimes in the area, including two rapes that occurred a week before the alleged assault of the two girls, WAVY reported. He’s accused of abducting three people and sexually assaulting six in Norfolk from December 2007 to October 2008, with all the victims being “girls or women between the ages of 15 and 18 years old.”
This story was originally published April 6, 2023 at 11:11 AM with the headline "‘Serial rapist’ indicted in cold cases after lying on firearm form, Virginia cops say."
