Police say they have arrested a man suspected in the latest of a string of groping incidents in the city's Beacon Hill neighborhood.
Seattle police spokeswoman Renee Witt said the suspect, 42-year-old Darin Lamott Bolar, was arrested Thursday and is being interviewed by detectives.
"We were really desperate to get this suspect in custody," she said.
Police said they found Bolar hiding out inside a house which was not his home.
King County Prosecutors have charged Bolar with assault and robbery.
The arrest came after the latest groping incident Saturday morning when a woman was accosted while walking along Renton Avenue South.
The woman, who was with a young child at the time, screamed, drawing the attention of those nearby and prompting the groper to back off.
One of the witnesses took out his phone and began taking pictures of the groper's vehicle and license plate, police said. When the groper realized what was going on, he yanked the phone out of the witness's hand.
"I heard the lady scream and then I turned around and saw the hand coming around her back side," said Earl Johnson of the Saturday incident.
Johnson said he made sure to document every detail of the incident, including the attacker's face.
"He came up behind me, reached in my pocket, snatched my phone out of my pocket and said 'what do you have on this?' And (he) took it and ran off," said Johnson.
Police said efficient police work and information from a witness led to the arrest. Police have not yet talked to the latest victim who witnesses said took off running after being assaulted while Bolar stood watching her and laughing.
Police have been searching for a man suspected of groping more than two dozen Asian women in the area since 2006. Most of the women were attacked while walking to and from bus stops in South Seattle.
In charging documents filed Thursday, prosecutors wrote that Bolar is suspected in many of the groping incidents and asked that he be held on $500,000 bail.
At a news conference discussing the arrest, police officials said they were trying to determine whether a second man may be responsible for some of the attacks.
"We do believe there may be additional suspects related to other cases," said Witt.
Bolar is a registered sex offender with a long criminal history which includes convictions of child rape, robbery, assault and theft.
He is scheduled to be arraigned in King County Superior Court on June 4.
who is already on the sex offender registry
..........Sarah Tofte, Human Rights Watch
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