The Dallas juvenile rape, murder suspect has been charged with capital murder with a bond set at $1 million.
The Dallas County District Attorney says the 16-year-old will be tried as an adult in the rape and death of a 23-year-old Dallas woman as well as in a string of other sexual assaults.
Lenario Washington is facing eight charges as an adult, one for capital murder, four for aggravated sexual assault, four for aggravated assaults and one for burglary with intent to commit aggravated assault.
The DA's office said Washington was 15-years-old when the crimes were committed but due to the severity of the charges he'll be tried as an adult. Even though he's being tried as an adult, the sheriff's office said due to his age they will not be releasing a mug shot.
Washington is accused of raping and killing 23-year-old Maria Ezquerro, who was found deceased of "homicidal violence" in her apartment on Peterson Lane on Nov. 27, 2018.
NBC 5 reported in December 2018 a stolen laptop equipped with GPS led police to Washington. From there, investigators said, DNA confirmed Washington "was responsible for the capital murder of victim Maria Ezquerro" and linked him to sexual assaults in Bossier City, Louisiana.
Prior to developing Washington as a suspect, Dallas police said information learned from the Bossier City police indicated the person responsible for two sexual assaults in their city in March and April 2018 may have been related to three assaults in Dallas on Sept. 12, Sept. 19 and Oct. 30 of the same year.
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"Detectives believe the cases may be related based on the similarities between the suspect description and his actions during the offenses," police said at the time.
The police accounts of the assaults in September and October 2018 are below.
On Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2018, at approximately 10 a.m., the victim was inside of her apartment residence at 14200 Dallas Parkway, Dallas, Texas. The suspect knocked on the door and solicited a donation. When the suspect took the donation, he pushed his way into the residence and sexually assaulted the victim. The suspect was described as a black male, 16- to 17-years-old, approximately 5 feet 3 inches tall, 120 pounds wearing khaki pants, white polo shirt, and may have a visible injury to his wrist. The suspect displayed a weapon.
On Wednesday, Sept. 19, 2018, at approximately 8:30 a.m., the victim was inside of her apartment residence at 14100 Montfort Drive, Dallas, Texas. The suspect knocked on the door and solicited work. The suspect pushed his way into the residence and sexually assaulted the victim. The suspect was described as a black male, 18- to 22-years-old, approximately 5 feet 8 inches tall, thin build, wearing dark pants and a blue jacket. The suspect displayed a weapon.
On Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2018, at approximately 4 p.m., the complainant was inside of her apartment residence at The Wildflower Apartments, 6031 Pineland Drive, Dallas, Texas. The suspect knocked on the door and solicited work. The suspect pushed his way into the residence and sexually assaulted the complainant. The suspect was described as a black male, 16- to 18-years-old, approximately 5 feet 8 inches tall, 140 pounds with a box fade haircut and he had a mark on his wrist. The suspect was last seen wearing black pants, a black T-shirt with something white on the front, a black jacket, and black/red athletic shoes. The suspect displayed a weapon.
