Reno police said they're making a renewed push to find more women who might be linked to a former Marine arrested in the slaying of a 19-year-old college student and the abduction and rape of another college student.
James Michael Biela, 27, of Sparks, was arrested Tuesday and booked into the Washoe County Jail on suspicion of murdering Brianna Denison early this year. He's also charged with the kidnapping and sexual assault of another woman in Reno last December.
Investigators also suspect Biela sexually attacked two other college students in Reno cases in which he has not been charged.
Detectives issued a public plea for women who were sexually assaulted from late 2007 through March to step forward if they have not already reported the crimes.
"We would really love for any more victims to come forward," police Lt. Robert McDonald told the Reno Gazette-Journal. "We will do our best to keep the information confidential, but we need to know if there are more victims out there."
McDonald said authorities in Washington and Idaho also are revisiting unsolved sexual crimes for any ties to Biela.
Police said after Denison's body was found Feb. 15 in Reno, Biela quit his job here and moved to Lake Moses, Wash., to work as a pipe fitter.
In Idaho, Biela sold his truck, which was similar to the truck that the December victim described for police. He then bought another truck.
Because Biela's estranged girlfriend found women's underwear in his new truck in September, McDonald suspects Biela victimized more women.
McDonald said a computer recovered during a search of Biela's home will be examined Monday to see if it holds any clues about his involvement in the cases.
Denison, 19, a sophomore at Santa Barbara City College in California, was visiting her hometown during winter break when she vanished Jan. 20. Authorities say she had been sleeping on a couch at a friend's rented home near the University of Nevada, Reno.
Her body was found almost a month later in a brush-covered lot in south Reno. An autopsy showed she was raped and strangled.
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Information from: Reno Gazette-Journal, www.rgj.com
James Michael Biela, 27, of Sparks, was arrested Tuesday and booked into the Washoe County Jail on suspicion of murdering Brianna Denison early this year. He's also charged with the kidnapping and sexual assault of another woman in Reno last December.
Investigators also suspect Biela sexually attacked two other college students in Reno cases in which he has not been charged.
Detectives issued a public plea for women who were sexually assaulted from late 2007 through March to step forward if they have not already reported the crimes.
"We would really love for any more victims to come forward," police Lt. Robert McDonald told the Reno Gazette-Journal. "We will do our best to keep the information confidential, but we need to know if there are more victims out there."
McDonald said authorities in Washington and Idaho also are revisiting unsolved sexual crimes for any ties to Biela.
Police said after Denison's body was found Feb. 15 in Reno, Biela quit his job here and moved to Lake Moses, Wash., to work as a pipe fitter.
In Idaho, Biela sold his truck, which was similar to the truck that the December victim described for police. He then bought another truck.
Because Biela's estranged girlfriend found women's underwear in his new truck in September, McDonald suspects Biela victimized more women.
McDonald said a computer recovered during a search of Biela's home will be examined Monday to see if it holds any clues about his involvement in the cases.
Denison, 19, a sophomore at Santa Barbara City College in California, was visiting her hometown during winter break when she vanished Jan. 20. Authorities say she had been sleeping on a couch at a friend's rented home near the University of Nevada, Reno.
Her body was found almost a month later in a brush-covered lot in south Reno. An autopsy showed she was raped and strangled.
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Information from: Reno Gazette-Journal, www.rgj.com
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