Durham Regional Police say a suspect in two violent sexual assaults in Ajax and Oshawa has been arrested after a day-long manhunt.
Investigators said on Thursday they were searching for Evan Sweet, 28, of no fixed address. They believe he may have been involved in two sexual assaults committed in the last week.
In the first incident, a woman was attacked in the lobby of an apartment complex near St. Lawrence Street and Simcoe Street South in South Oshawa on Jan. 8. Police say the attacker was armed with a knife during the assault. Both the victim and the attacker were gone by the time responding officers arrived.
Officers swept the area and found the victim seriously injured a short distance from the apartment building. Her wounds are not life-threatening.
The next day, another similar assault was reported near Harwood Avenue South and Hunt Street in Ajax, about a 15-minute drive from the Oshawa scene. Police believe the same man from the first attack sexually assaulted another woman around 1 p.m.
By 7 p.m. police identified Sweet as a suspect in the attacks. They put out a community safety alert at that time calling on the community for information.
On Jan. 10, their efforts proved successful. Sweet was arrested in Peterborough and transferred to Durham Police custody. He’s charged with:
- robbery,
- assault causing bodily harm,
- two counts of sexual assault, and
- forcible confinement.
Sweet will remain in custody until a bail hearing. The charges have not been proven in court. Anyone with information can call police at 1-888-579-1520 ext. 5316 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
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