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Georgia investigators are searching for potential victims of a convicted Florida sex offender after DNA linked him to three sexual assault cases involving women allegedly lured through Craigslist job ads.
Julius Hunter, 42, faces rape, aggravated sodomy and kidnapping charges in Georgia in connection with a 2016 attack on a 19-year-old teen at a Clarkston apartment complex. A DeKalb County grand jury indicted him on Aug. 11.
Before his Georgia arrest, Hunter pleaded no contest in an unrelated 2021 Florida sexual battery case involving his former girlfriend. Investigators are now examining what they believe is a broader pattern of sexual assaults.
Julius Hunter, center, was arrested in Fort Lauderdale, right, in connection with a sexual assault in Clarkston, Georgia, left. (DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office; Joe Raedle/Getty Images; REUTERS/Carlos Barria)
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“Hunter grew up in New Jersey, so it is possible there may be victims there,” DeKalb County District Attorney Investigator Brandi Rogers told Fox News Digital.
Hunter’s DNA also matched evidence from two additional sexual assault cases in DeKalb and Gwinnett counties in 2016 and 2017, authorities said.
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He has not been charged in either case. Rogers said investigators have been unable to reconnect with the two women.
$300 babysitting job
The 19-year-old thought she was heading to a $300 overnight babysitting job when Hunter arranged a ride-share to an apartment near 700 Jolly Avenue on July 27, 2016, according to the DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office.
When she arrived, there were no children — only Hunter and another man, authorities said.
Julius Hunter was charged in a sexual assault case in Clarkston, Georgia. (Gregory Rec/Portland Press Herald via Getty Images)
She attempted to leave, but Hunter allegedly stopped her and sexually assaulted her over several hours before releasing her the following day.
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The woman fled in a cab and asked the driver to call 911. She then met police officers at a gas station before going to a hospital for a sexual assault exam.
Rogers told Fox News Digital that investigators have not identified the second man inside the apartment and continue to seek information about him. He has not been charged.
Florida arrest leads to DNA match
The Clarkston case remained unsolved for years after the Georgia Bureau of Investigation developed a male DNA profile from the 19-year-old’s sexual assault kit. The profile was entered into the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) but, at the time, did not match anyone in the national database.
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That changed after Hunter’s 2021 Florida conviction. Authorities collected his DNA and entered his profile into CODIS, triggering a match to DNA recovered from the Clarkston sexual assault kits, along with the sexual assault kits collected in the DeKalb and Gwinnett counties cases.
Authorities arrested Hunter in Fort Lauderdale on Aug. 13, two days after the DeKalb County grand jury indicted him. He was extradited to Georgia and booked into the DeKalb County Jail on Aug. 20.
Julius Hunter was arrested in Fort Lauderdale. (Hoberman Collection/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
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Hunter was serving an 11-year probation sentence for the Florida conviction when Georgia authorities secured the indictment against him.
Don Plummer, a spokesperson for the Georgia Public Defender Council, which is representing Hunter, declined to comment on the case.
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Similar Craigslist ads
The DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office said in a Sept. 14 media alert that the Georgia cases shared similarities beyond DNA. Authorities said Hunter used Craigslist ads to solicit women for jobs involving “babysitting, modeling, dancing and massages.”
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Rogers said the number of incidents within a relatively short period suggests there could be additional victims.
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The Georgia Sexual Assault Kit Initiative Task Force, a collaboration of prosecutors, investigators and victim advocates who investigate cold-case sexual assaults, is currently investigating the cases.
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Rogers is urging anyone who believes Hunter victimized them to contact law enforcement, stressing that coming forward does not require a victim to pursue prosecution.
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“We ask anyone who believes they may have been victimized to call our tip line at 404-371-2444,” Rogers said.
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“It is important that we hear their stories so we can offer them support whether or not they decide to move forward with prosecution.”