DNA links home invasion attacks in Sarasota

SARASOTA — Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office officials today said DNA testing has confirmed they are dealing with a serial attacker of women in Sarasota.

Sheriff’s Col. Steve Burns said in a prepared statement that DNA recovered from a series of home invasion attacks on women has detectives “confident in stating that a number of the cases are related.”

Authorities in Manatee and Sarasota have been investigating whether 10 similar attacks in both counties are related. Burns said none of the DNA evidence gathered in the Sarasota cases has been linked to any of five similar attacks in Manatee.

This story was originally published April 28, 2009 at 12:00 AM with the headline "DNA links home invasion attacks in Sarasota."