Ricky Harnish, 52, is now a suspect in the murder. Clear Creek County Sheriff Don Krueger said very little about the arrest and the suspect at a joint news conference because he wasn#39;t allowed to say much. A judge has placed a gag order on investigators.
Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey on the other hand had much to say about the arrest of Michael Keith Lollis.
quot;This is the day many of us have been waiting for,quot; said Morrissey.
The 43-year-old suspect is now connected to nine cases of sexual assaults. Those assaults took place in Denver, Aurora and Arapahoe County in 2004 and 2005. Police said the attacks were random.
During the news conference at the headquarters of the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Morrissey detailed how DNA samples taken from Lollis matched DNA evidence from the assaults. Lollis#39; DNA sample was entered into a state and database after he was processed into the Colorado prison system. Morrissey said he was recently convicted on felony forgery charges and was serving time when the match was made.
The frustration for Morrissey and investigators lies in the fact that Lollis was arrested back in Denver in February 2004. Morrissey says because the state doesn#39;t mandate DNA testing at the time of arrest or booking and his sentencing was delayed, Lollis#39; DNA did not get registered into the state#39;s database immediately.
Morrissey says five of the nine sexual assaults Lollis is accused of being involved in may have been prevented and nearly $1 million in police and investigative costs may have been saved.
quot;Had we had a law that requires that we take a swab of a suspect#39;s cheek, we could have saved some victims the grief this man caused. It makes sense to do so, we can do it right when we book a guy, when we take his fingerprints,quot; Morrissey said.
Family and friends of the victims in the cases did not attend the news conference. Denver Police Sergeant Anthony Parisi said the arrests hopefully will bring some comfort to those affected by the crimes.
quot;You know it starts with the victims, they're brave enough to come forward. My biggest feeling for them is to give them some source of closure for them,quot; said Parisi.
Morrissey says there is an effort underway to lobby legislators to establish mandatory DNA testing at the time of arrest. Doing so, said Morrissey, would allow for quicker capture of criminals that may be linked to multiple crimes.
