Man sought by police in Frankford assaults

The man police believe sexually assaulted six women in Frankford has become so brazen that he attacked the last two victims within hours yesterday morning, authorities said.

Anticrime activists passed out flyers in the neighborhood yesterday while police - in a massive manhunt - took the unusual move of releasing the name and picture of a man wanted for questioning.

Uniformed and undercover officers patrolled the area of the attacks as a newly created task force coordinated the investigation. Police passed out updated posters displaying the picture of an ex-con they called "a person of interest."

That man, Dorrell Shaw, 26, of the 5200 block of Marlowe Street, has not been charged but is wanted for questioning. No DNA evidence links Shaw to the assaults, but Capt. John Darby of the Special Victims Unit said Shaw's name emerged after police released a drawing of the suspected rapist last week. Police are still processing DNA evidence.

Authorities urgently warned women to take safety precautions, fearing that the attacks could escalate as the assailant, armed with a gun, seems to be taking more risks, attacking the last victim within view of Dyre Street.

"It could have been me," said Connie Cook, 42, a waitress who works a night shift. She lives in an apartment next to the driveway where the last attack occurred amid a stretch of rowhouses.

"It's bad enough to be scared in your own neighborhood, but to be scared in your own home - it's a mess," Cook said as she clutched a police flyer.

Shaw is wanted on a probation violation for a recent burglary conviction. His criminal history also includes robbery. In all six attacks, the assailant demanded money.

Shaw lives in the area - a mix of residential and commercial properties - and his physical features match those given by victims, Darby said, noting the similarities between the drawing created by a police sketch artist and Shaw's last police mug shot.

Late yesterday afternoon, there was no response to knocks on the door of the two-story rowhouse on Marlowe where Shaw lives. People on the block offered mixed views about any possible involvement by Shaw in the violent attacks, with most saying they didn't think he committed them.

Joan Dutton, in her 40s, said, "He does not look like the sketch."

Jason Carrion, 24, said he came back to the neighborhood to be near his estranged wife.

"Until they lock him up, I'm going to be here," Carrion said. "I've got a daughter, too. She is 7, my wife is 22.

"This guy was friendly," he added.

Others said Shaw and his girlfriend had moved out Sunday night.

In the first attack yesterday morning, the victim was pulled to the ground by her hair and beaten. Police said the assault occurred at 12:30 a.m. in the 1200 block of Wakeling Street. An 18-year-old woman reported that she was going to a friend's home when she was grabbed from behind and pulled into an alley.

She pulled a box cutter and defended herself, but the assailant beat her severely before he fled, police said.

Another attack took place less than four hours later, at Frankford Avenue and Dyre Street. A 29-year-old woman said she was walking home when she was assaulted at gunpoint.

Police said that they believed these two assaults were carried out by the same man responsible for three attacks last week and one in June, but that the assaults had not conclusively been linked.

Although there are similarities in the cases - three of the attacks happened after a man encountered his young victims on the street, either at night or early in the morning - there are discrepancies as well. In a fourth attack, a 37-year-old woman was raped inside her home.

In Frankford yesterday, neighborhood residents were resolute.

"This is our neighborhood and we're taking it back," said block captain Meshelle Mayfield. "We fight to keep the drugs out. We fight to keep guns off our street. We are not going to let someone like this come in and destroy our neighborhood."

"It's sickening," said another block captain, James Irving, who has lived here for four years caring for his sick mother. "We're outraged."

The attacker is described as a black male with a dark complexion, in his late teens or early 20s. He is about 6 feet tall, weighing about 170 pounds, and has a medium build. He was wearing dark denim jeans. At least three of the victims said the attacker wore a hooded sweatshirt.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Special Victims Unit at 215-685-3251.