BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. – A suspect dubbed the “Pillowcase Rapist” decades ago is in custody. The man was one of Florida’s most hunted criminals. The sex fiend who terrorized more than four dozen women in the 1980s has been caught, according to reports.
Robert Eugene Koehler, 60, a registered sex offender from Palm Bay, Fla., has been identified by law enforcement sources as the serial offender, the Miami Herald reported.
Koehler was arrested Saturday in Brevard County, according to the news agency.
At least 44 women from Miami to Deerfield Beach were victims of the Pillowcase Rapist from May 1981 to February 1986, according to the paper. The rapist broke into townhomes and apartments and used a pillowcase, towel or shirt to hide his identity.
The evildoer was never brought to justice. Detectives conducted stakeouts, checked hundreds of leads, passed out fliers and even created a sculpture from one victim who saw his face. Nevertheless, he was never caught, until now, according to authorities.
Investigators also explored the possibility that the attacks may have been committed by more than one rapist. The task force created to find the attacker was ultimately disbanded in 1987.
At the time, police detectives said the rapist was likely young, athletic and white and with no discernible accent. From lab tests, they concluded his blood type was O, but with a rare subgrouping characteristic found in 1 percent of the population. They also knew he wore a size 10 1/2 shoe.
Among the victims of the Pillowcase Rapist were a schoolteacher, nurse, airline flight attendant, artist, model, health spa instructor, insurance executive, publicist and student, the Herald reported.
The serial rapist assaulted his victims quickly after threatening them with a knife. Moreover, in some instances he stole cash, the paper reported.
Details of what led police to Koehler remained unknown Monday. The case was investigated by Miami-Dade police, the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
Koehler would have been in his early 20s during the sex-attack spree. FDLE lists him as a registered sex offender for a sexual battery conviction in 1991 in Palm Beach County, according to the paper.
