Prosecutor: DNA links man to rapes

A former Cincinnati man was indicted Wednesday in connection with a series of rapes over eight years.

According to Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters, Lamont Wilks was indicted on 24 counts, including rape, aggravated burglary and aggravated robbery.

Investigators identified him as a suspect using the Combined DNA Index System, which takes DNA samples from inmates in Ohio prisons.

The violent attacks happened from 1995 to 2003 in Pleasant Ridge and Golf Manor. In each rape, the suspect used a knife to force his victims to cooperate.

Wilks is now in jail at the Dayton Correctional Institution, serving a five-year sentence on unrelated robbery charges.

According to Ohio Department of Corrections records, the 34-year-old was sentenced to five years in prison on Aug. 21, 2004, for five counts of robbery from Hamilton County.

If convicted on the rape charges, Wilks would face prison sentences of up to 240 years.