Police Canine Spots a Rape Suspect Hiding Behind Bushes

An alert police dog, on patrol with a Fountain Valley officer, spotted a suspect hiding in the bushes early Wednesday and led to the arrest of a 22-year-old man who Fountain Valley and Huntington Beach police believe could be responsible for a series of rapes dating back to 1985.

Robin Scott Dasenbrock of Fountain Valley was found crouching in the dark foliage near a window of a unit at Park Pacific apartments about 1:15 a.m., police said.

The arresting officer said Dasenbrock was found about 500 yards from the scene of an attempted rape of a 21-year-old woman Monday night in the same apartment complex.

“He (Dasenbrock) was so well-hidden in the bushes in the dark that, if it wasn’t for the dog, I wouldn’t have found him,” Fountain Valley Officer James Floren said.

Common Fingerprint in Four Cases

Police said they believe that Dasenbrock may be responsible for at least nine rapes and attempted rapes in Fountain Valley and Huntington Beach.

Fountain Valley investigators have already linked Dasenbrock’s fingerprints to four of their five cases, Police Chief Elvin G. Miali said. Huntington Beach police believe that they have a common fingerprint in at least one of their four rape cases.

Dasenbrock was arrested on suspicion of forcible rape and is being held without bail in Orange County Jail. Police are going through the cases individually and expect to present their evidence to the district attorney today for the filing of specific counts.

The arrest occurred at the rear of a large, well-kept apartment complex that is across the street from where Dasenbrock lives and less than a mile from the police station.

As soon as Floren spotted Dasenbrock in the bushes, the officer said, “I was fairly confident he was the suspect.”

Floren, a four-year veteran of the Fountain Valley force, had also responded to the attempted rape case at the same complex Monday night. “I knew he matched the description from the night before,” he said.

Floren said he and his police dog, Arras, had walked through the apartment complex in the 10300 block of La Hacienda Avenue at about 10 p.m. Tuesday as part of an increased patrol in response to the recent rape attempts. They found nothing then.

About 1:15 a.m. Wednesday, just as his shift was winding down, he and his black-and-brown German shepherd partner had time for another foot search of the complex, he said at a press conference.

“So I figured, let’s do it again, one more time, and bingo!” he said.

The only directive he gave Arras, he said, was his usual order: “Get the bad guy.”

With Arras on a leash, they walked along a sidewalk inside the apartment complex, he said. “All of a sudden, he (Arras) turned his head to the left” and spotted the suspect, Floren said. The dog, he said, detects “the fear scent, primarily.”

Floren used his flashlight to locate the dark-clothed suspect, then drew his gun and ordered the man out of the bushes, he said. Dasenbrock, who was not armed, offered no resistance and did not say anything during the arrest, Floren said.

Found Near Window

Fountain Valley Chief Miali said the suspect was found near an apartment window, but it was not known whether the suspect had attempted to enter that unit.

According to police accounts of recent attacks, the serial rapist entered ground-floor apartments through unlocked windows and attacked women who lived alone as they slept. Sometimes the rapist was armed with a knife, but at other times he was not armed, they said. Huntington Beach police Wednesday called the series of attacks the “kitchen window” rape case.

Police described Dasenbrock as white, 5 feet, 9 inches tall, and weighing about 155 pounds, with light brown hair and brown eyes. Although police would not release a photograph of the suspect, Chief Miali said “it appears at this time” that Dasenbrock fits the composite drawing of the rape suspect issued by police a few months ago.

Miali said that because Dasenbrock “didn’t live that far from where he was hit,” the suspect was familiar with the neighborhood and could move through the area easily.

Another Attack

At least one other attack, in addition to Monday’s attempted rape, occurred in the neighborhood, Fountain Valley police said.

Police now plan to put Dasenbrock’s picture in a photographic lineup--containing the pictures of similar-looking men who are not suspects--to show to rape and attempted rape victims for identification.

In addition, Miali said, police are interested in hearing from rape victims in the area who have not yet reported the attacks.

The series of attacks on women in Huntington Beach and Fountain Valley began in November, 1985, Miali said. Of the four rapes in Huntington Beach, two occurred near Newland Street and Talbert Avenue, one was reported near Magnolia and Garfield avenues and one was in the vicinity of Springdale Street and Warner Avenue, Huntington Beach Police Lt. Ed McErlain said.

Police in the two cities responded to the series of attacks by forming a special investigative task force and increasing and concentrating patrols in certain areas, Miali said.

Background Lacking

Police said they had no background on Dasenbrock, who listed his address as 17060 San Mateo St., a well-kept, expansive complex called the Sundance Apartments.

Debbie Herron, a rental consultant at the Sundance apartment complex, said Dasenbrock moved in about a month ago, sharing an apartment with a woman, an existing tenant, whose former roommate had moved out. Herron had seen Dasenbrock only twice, once during the signing of the rental agreement and the last time near the pool, she said. She understood that Dasenbrock works in a warehouse, she said.

Neighbors in the fashionable apartment complex, built around a bubbling, man-made creek, said they did not know the suspect. Dasenbrock’s roommate was not home. A “Private Property--No Trespassing” sign was visible on Dasenbrock’s second-floor balcony.

Fountain Valley Police Sgt. Pat Zehner said Dasenbrock has also lived in Huntington Beach, Santa Ana and other Orange County locations in recent years.

‘Sleeping Lightly’

One resident in the Park Pacific apartment complex, where the latest rape attempt occurred and the arrest was made, said she had been “sleeping lightly” ever since she heard about the series of rapes.

“I feel a lot better now, but I’m still not going out without my husband,” said Tina Elliott, 18, who lives a few yards from the site of the arrest.

Officer Floren said his 5-year-old canine companion has assisted on about half a dozen arrests during the dog’s 2 1/2 years on the force. Arras, who was trained in Germany for police work, lives with Floren.

It had been a long night for Arras, who had yet to receive his usual reward for a job well done, Floren said at noon Wednesday. “He gets a steak when we get home.”