Houston police arrest suspect in several sexual assaults

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Houston Police have arrested a man they believe attacked and raped at least seven women in and around northeast Houston.

Marquis V. Tate, 33, is charged with eight counts of aggravated sexual assault. He was arrested on June 1 without incident. His arrest comes after an investigation into a possible serial rapist in the Fifth Ward area.

Investigators say Tate attacked women whom he thought were prostitutes, though that wasn't always the case. All his victims were women walking by themselves.

"He has pulled out a knife in the majority of the cases, and in two of the cases, he pulled out a firearm and forced them into the vehicle," Houston Police Investigator Monica Fortson said.

Tate would then allegedly take the victims somewhere nearby and sexually assault them.

Police say there were 13 sexual assault cases with similar suspect and vehicle or location descriptions.

In five of those cases, police say there was no match to the DNA database and with victims either not wanting to pursue the case or being difficult to locate, it was hard for them to locate a suspect.

However, one lead took them to Ft. Worth, where they tied Tate to a vehicle that matched the description in multiple reports.

He was then linked through DNA analysis or identified in a photo lineup in seven cases and was charged in all of them.

Police believe Tate started targeting women in 2012, but there were no reports from 2013-2014. Investigators determined he was living out of the state at the time.

Police say there may be more victims and ask that anyone who believes they may have been sexually assaulted by this suspect to call them at 713-308-1180.