DNA LINKS SEX CRIMES TO INMATE.

Byline: Greg Botonis Staff Writer

LANCASTER - DNA tests have linked a state prison inmate to a series of violent sexual assaults in 2003 in Lancaster.

Jacob Renald Smith, 23, was linked to at least four sex crimes and a home invasion robbery in which an elderly woman was shot between January and August 2003, sheriff's officials said Tuesday.

``We used every available resource to try to catch this individual,'' said Lancaster sheriff's station commander Capt. Carl Deeley. ``These terrible crimes were made particularly heinous by the fact that some of the victims were clutching their children, trying to protect them during the assault.''

Smith has been behind bars since November 2003, when he was arrested on an unrelated San Bernardino County crime. Smith has a burglary record, deputies said.

Smith was linked to the Lancaster sex crimes under a state law that requires all felons to submit DNA to a database that can be accessed by law enforcement agencies throughout the United States.

All but one of the assaults were committed within a 1 1/2-mile radius of central Lancaster, near where he lived.

``The detectives have contacted the victims and they are obviously very excited,'' Deeley said.

Two of the sexual assaults and an attempted assault were reported to the media. In each incident, they occurred during the day in public place - a park, a coin laundry and a parking lot, deputies said.

At the park, a man approached a woman and asked her for a light for his cigarette, then pulled out a gun and forced her into a vehicle.

In the parking lot attack, a woman in her car outside a doughnut shop was pulled out at gunpoint and then forced into an alley. That woman managed to break free and escape before she was sexually assaulted, deputies said.

In the laundry assault, a woman was robbed, then was forced to perform a sex act while she was holding her 4-year-old daughter. The assailant made off with her car keys but did not take her car.

Investigators said Smith is suspected of two other assaults, including one involving an elderly woman who was shot in her home as she resisted an intruder, but they would not release any additional information for fear of jeopardizing the cases.

At one point in 2003, investigators believed they were near catching the attacker. They released to the news media a composite sketch and after the last attack brought in police dogs, which led investigators to the block that they now know Smith lived on.

``The crimes seemed to just stop,'' Deeley said. ``We almost had him. We believe that we chased him out of Lancaster.''

Investigators suspect Smith may have committed or attempted more sexual assaults that they don't know about. A telephone hotline for additional victims or anyone with information in the case has been established at [phone].

Deputies refused Tuesday to release to the news media a photo of Smith for fear that could jeopardize the case.

``We believe there may be other victims out there that did not report the assault,'' Deeley said.

Smith was scheduled to be released from prison in September had he not been linked to the Lancaster crimes. Smith is facing 37 charges ranging from rape and robbery to attempted murder.

Smith will be brought to Lancaster for court proceedings in the next several days, officials said. Judge Steve Ogden has set Smith's bail at $12 million.

``We're anticipating more charges being filed at a later date,'' said Detective Randy Prestwich. He and his partner, Detective Elizabeth Sheppard, have worked on the case for the past two years.