infoCold Case Arrest 25 Years Later: Riverside County Serial Rapist

Cold Case Arrest 25 Years Later: Riverside County Serial Rapist

A serial rapist who terrorized his female victims and eluded capture for nearly 25 years in Riverside County has been arrested in Arizona after DNA helped crack the case, it was announced during a Wednesday morning press conference held by Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin, Corona Police Chief George Johnstone and Riverside Police Chief Larry Gonzalez.

Darin Edward Cooke, 50, has been charged with six counts of forcible rape, four counts of forcible oral copulation, three counts of assault with intent to commit rape, two counts of kidnapping and one count of forcible sexual penetration.

Investigators were led to Cooke by DNA evidence collected during the investigation of the assaults that started 24 years ago, authorities said at a news conference held at the District Attorney\u00e2\u0080\u0099s Office.

\"These were extremely violent assaults,\" Hestrin said during the briefing at the DA's headquarters in downtown Riverside. \"The victims suffered. These were tremendously horrible incidents, and for some of them, their lives will never be the same.\"

Either a knife or a handgun was used in all of the attacks against six victims, the DA\u00e2\u0080\u0099s Office said. Each of the 16 counts that Cooke is charged with carries a potential life sentence if he is convicted.

The arrest was a combined effort involving the Corona and Riverside police departments, the Yavapai County (Arizona) Sheriff\u00e2\u0080\u0099s Office, and the FBI Phoenix Violent Crimes Task Force which is made up of the Phoenix, Peoria, and Scottsdale police departments; the Maricopa County Sheriff\u00e2\u0080\u0099s Office; the Maricopa County District Attorney\u00e2\u0080\u0099s Office; and the FBI.