A Detroit man suspected of raping an 80-year-old woman before attacking another woman just more than a week later stood in front of a judge Thursday and pleaded not guilty to numerous charges.
Police say Kenneth Dwight Davis Jr., 28, invaded the home of the 80-year-old woman in northwest Detroit on March 26, demanding money and food. He then dragged her outside and sexually assaulted her, according to Detroit police.
Police say Davis raped another woman, 64, about a mile away, on April 3. The woman was walking near Grand River Avenue and Ferguson Street about 5:10 a.m. when the suspect approached her, police said. He forced her behind a building on Grand River, sexually assaulted her and fled the scene, police said.
In the March 26 incident, court documents show Davis is charged with two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct during a felony, one count of first-degree home invasion, and one count of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct.
In the April 3 incident, Davis is charged with three counts of third-degree criminal sexual conduct and one count of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct.
“Sexual assault is at its core a horrifying crime under any and all circumstances. It is a literal intrusion of a person’s very being,” Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said in a statement.
“When our cherished elders and other of our must vulnerable citizens are violated, it adds layers of outrage to this already outrageous crime.”
Community members joined police in the hunt to find the attacker last week. Hundreds went door to door in Detroit neighborhoods with flyers of a police sketch previously released to the public after the rape of the 80-year-old woman. Davis was apprehended Tuesday by Detroit police and Michigan State Police.
The two agencies located a vehicle about 6:20 p.m. that matched the description of a vehicle associated with an acquaintance of Davis. Police stopped the vehicle in Rouge Park, off Plymouth Road, and arrested Davis without incident.
Judge Laura Echartea of 36th District Court denied bond, or pretrial release. She noted DNA evidence has been linked to Davis in the rape of the 80-year-old woman.
An attorney for Davis, Sahar Faraj, asked the court for her client to receive personal bond or be held at a psychiatric facility.
Faraj said Davis suffers from severe schizophrenia and is not taking medication for it. His mother, who was his primary caretaker, was recently sent to prison, Faraj said.
Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Elisabeth Moore noted Davis has no stable home to return to if he were released.
A probable cause conference has been scheduled for April 18. The preliminary examination is scheduled for April 25.