The “Collegetown Creeper,” a suspect in a series of sexual attacks on women in New York, pleaded guilty in San Diego Superior Court to assault with intent to commit rape on an Ocean Beach woman in 2005. DNA found at the scene was eventually linked to the New York assaults, identifying the suspect as Abraham Shorey.
Shorey, 25, faces a maximum term of seven years and four months in state prison, said Deputy District Attorney Katherine Flaherty. Shorey also pleaded guilty to burglary with intent to commit rape for the same incident, which occurred Aug. 7, 2005.
Early that morning, a 20-year-old Ocean Beach woman awoke in her bedroom to discover that a man with a ski mask had climbed into bed with her. He put his hand over her mouth, but she bit him, drawing blood.
Though the intruder fled, he left behind incriminating evidence. Flaherty said the blood was analyzed for DNA and Shorey turned up as a match. At the time, he was wanted for attacks in 2003 and 2004 near Cornell University. Due to the nature of the New York incidents “” the suspect entered women’s homes, touched the victims with baby oil as they slept and even cut off one woman’s clothing “” the perpetrator was dubbed the “Collegetown Creeper.”
Judge David Danielsen will sentence Shorey on Nov. 8. Other dismissed charges included two burglary attempts at homes neighboring the Ocean Beach woman’s residence that same night. Shorey told San Diego police he cut two rear door window screens, but discovered both windows were locked. The bedroom window of the Ocean Beach woman was closed, but unlocked.
Ten witnesses, including the Ocean Beach victim, testified in Shorey’s preliminary hearing on June 26, and he was ordered to stand trial on all five charges.
Shorey will remain in San Diego County jail until his sentencing. Flaherty said she did not know if New York authorities would extradite him after sentencing or wait until he finishes his term in a California prison, as he has yet to be tried for the Cornell crimes.
Shorey was profiled on “America’s Most Wanted” in May. San Diego Police subsequently received a tip that Shorey was in Normal Heights, where he was arrested on May 5. Days earlier he was stopped for driving without a license in Chula Vista. An officer issued him a ticket and he was fingerprinted, but released before the fingerprint analysis showed a connection to the crimes in Ithaca, New York.