Officials Probe Link in 11 Reports of Prowlers, Assaults on Women

Authorities in Loudoun County investigating a string of assaults on women in their homes listed as many as 11 incidents yesterday, dating back to January -- many near the Washington & Old Dominion Trail -- that they believe are connected.

In several of the intrusions, the bulk of which occurred in Leesburg, a man wearing a black ski mask entered homes through unlocked doors and touched women in their beds before being scared off, Leesburg police said.

Yesterday, an Ashburn Farm woman awoke in her home in the 43400 block of Edgecliff Terrace about 1:30 a.m. to find a man touching her, the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office said. The man, who was short and possibly wearing a cap, apparently entered through a first-floor bedroom window that was left open and fled after the woman screamed, authorities said.

The area was searched by helicopter and canine units, but no suspect was found, authorities said.

"We haven't seen cases of this magnitude where someone is apparently purposely concealing their identity and entering homes," sheriff's office spokesman Kraig Troxell said. "It's unclear at this time what the motive is, but the cases do appear to be escalating."

Earlier this week, Leesburg police said there had been at least five similar cases in town over the past three months. Yesterday, they released a list of 11 incidents dating back to Jan. 30 that they believe to be part of the string, and the sheriff's office said it was investigating at least four other incidents in other parts of the county to see whether they are connected.

The Leesburg incidents occurred in the Exeter, Kincaid Forest, Oakview, Foxridge and Silver Oaks communities as well as in a mobile home park, police said.

Many of the intrusions happened near the W&OD Trail, a popular bicycle and jogging path lined by several housing developments, Leesburg police spokesman Wes Thompson said.

The trail "seems to be a common denominator," Thompson said. "I don't want to scare people off the trail . . . but if you look at the addresses versus the access points [to the trail] . . . there's a nexus. . . . But I don't want people to think if they're not within walking distance of the trail" that they shouldn't be careful.

Troxell said: "The fact that the trail is right there may or may not have something to do with these cases."

Nevertheless, Shelly Whitt, a Kincaid Forrest resident whose home backs up to the trail, said that she will no longer allow her 13-year-old daughter to use the trail unless she is with a large group of friends, and she will not let her children play alone in the back yard anymore.

"We're just going to be more cautious," Whitt said.

In about half of the 11 Leesburg cases, Thompson said, the suspect was scared off before an assault could occur. About two-thirds of the 11 cases happened inside people's homes, with the others occurring in the perimeter of the home, he said.

The sheriff's office also noted a May case in Paeonian Springs involving a woman awakening to an unknown person in her room, as well as two cases in July in the Ashburn Farm area: one in which a woman was grabbed outside her home at 2:15 a.m., and the other in which a group of friends reported a suspicious person in dark clothing walking at night near a residence.

Troxell said the sheriff's office is also coordinating with Fairfax County authorities, who reported a woman in Centreville being sexually assaulted by an intruder at knifepoint Aug. 8, although Troxell said that case appears to be more extreme than the others and might be unrelated.

Authorities are urging residents to report suspicious activity, keep all doors and windows locked and to be mindful of garage door openers left in cars that could allow people access to homes.