Hamilton man accused of breaking into homes to sexually assault women
A 40-year-old man is charged in three separate sexual assault cases where the perpetrator broke into West Hamilton homes, confined and attacked young women.
Two of the alleged attacks happened April 29, 2019 and July 26, 2019, when women in their early 20s - alone in their residences - were sexually assaulted by a stranger who broke in, said Hamilton police.
The investigation led police to reopen a similar, unsolved case from 2011.
It's unclear how the perpetrator chose his victims, however, the victims did not know their attacker.
During the investigation, detectives also uncovered multiple separate incidents of voyeurism where women were recorded without their knowledge, said Staff Sgt. Tammi Ewart.
It's not clear where the voyeurism took place but police believe at least some of the incidents also happened in West Hamilton.
These type of violent offences are serial and predatory in nature," Ewart said. It creates fear within our community, especially for women."
She later added, These are the crimes that rock our communities."
While commending the diligent work of detectives in the case, she said at the forefront" are the brave women who came forward to speak with investigators.
They are incredibly strong young women who provided investigators with information," she said.
On June 16, police arrested 40-year-old Dennis Rhodes of Hamilton.
He remains in custody and is charged with three counts of break enter and commit, three counts of sexual assault, three counts of forcible confinement, three counts of disguise with intent and three counts of voyeurism.
Detectives believe there may be other victims.
Last July, police issued a public appeal looking for information to identify a suspect after an early morning sexual assault in the Emerson Street and Ward Avenue area.
Police received a lot of responses at the time and are once again asking anyone with information to come forward.
To reach the Hamilton police sexual assault unit, call Det. Candace Culp at 905-546-4846.
To remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or crimestoppershamilton.com.
Nicole O'Reilly is a Hamilton-based reporter covering crime and justice for The Spectator. Reach her via email: noreilly@thespec.com