NORFOLK, VA – Police in Norfolk have made an arrest in a 14-year-old cold case investigation of a serial rapist dating back to 2008.
According to police, William L. Phelps IV., 33, was arrested and charged with rape, three counts of forcible sodomy, two counts of aggravated sexual battery, two counts of abduction, use of a firearm, and wearing a mask in public.
Two female teenagers were assaulted and raped on January 9, 2008, at around 7 am in the area of Verdun Avenue. The suspect was tied by evidence to two other rapes in Norfolk but was never identified or captured.
“In August of 2022, new evidence surfaced from an arrest made by the Virginia State Police that linked a man to the cold case rapes,” the Norfolk Police Department said today.