'Serial rapist' allegedly targeted victims in San Antonio Medical Center

Anton Harris, 18, charged with raping, robbing women in Medical Center

SAN ANTONIO – Detailed court documents shed new light on how accused serial rapist Anton Harris, 18, targeted women in the Medical Center area in San Antonio.

From preying on women in parked cars to following them to their apartment doors, arrest affidavits show how Harris allegedly made his way into the apartments of at least four women over the span of two years.

Police said Harris admitted to some of the crimes in a taped interview Thursday.

Read more from the arrest affidavits about Harris' alleged crimes: 

March 19, 2015
Location: 5600 block of Babcock Road
Harris is accused of groping a 28-year-old woman in an aggressive manner as she was walking to her apartment.

August 16, 2015
Location: 8000 block of Oakdell Way
The victim told authorities she was walking back to her apartment when she heard footsteps behind her. The victim said when she turned around, a man was behind her. The woman told authorities the man put a black shirt over her head and put her in a headlock as he dragged her backward. The woman clawed and scratched at the man's face until he let go and took off running. Authorities were able to collect and process the suspect's DNA from under her nails. Police said that sample linked Harris to the attack and five other sexual assault cases.

June 3, 2016
Location: 8000 block of Oakdell Way
The victim told police she had let her cat out of her apartment and heard scratching at her door a few minutes later. The woman looked out of the peephole and saw a man crouched near her door frame. The woman tried to close the door, but he threatened the woman with a long knife and forced his way in. An affidavit says the man was shouting, "Shut up, don't scream or I am going to kill you." The victim tried to run to the bathroom but the man followed her and grabbed her from behind while holding a knife to her throat. The man told the woman to remove her pants and then raped her. Before leaving the apartment, he told the woman not to move. 

December 22, 2016 
Location: Not Listed
A woman was home alone when she heard a series of knocks at her door. The woman told police she asked who was there, but got no response the two times the suspect knocked. An affidavit said the woman took a shower after the first time the man knocked and was watching TV the second time he knocked. On the third instance, the woman said she wrote it off as a prankster and opened the door. The suspect, who was wearing a hoodie and covering his face with a mask, pushed her into the apartment and threatened her with a knife. The affidavit said the man asked for money and the woman gave him what cash she had. The man took the woman to a bedroom and the woman began pleading with him not to do anything to her, but the man told the woman to shut up or he would kill her. He raped the woman while holding a knife to her throat then left.

January 15, 2017
Location: 5700 block of North Knoll
The victim told police she had returned home from a shopping trip, parked, grabbed her bags and was headed to her apartment when she noticed a man jogging through her apartment parking lot. When the woman unlocked her door, she realized a man was standing behind her, pointing a gun at her torso. The suspect asked the woman if anyone was home and the victim replied "no." The man then forced the woman into her apartment with the gun pointed to the back of her head. The document said he raped the woman, took cash and told her if she called police he would kill her. 

May 19, 2017
Location: 7800 Huebner
A  23-year-old woman told police she was in her parked car when she noticed a man pulling on her car door handle. The woman got out of the car and saw the man crouched on the passenger side of her car. The affidavit said the man grabbed the woman from behind and threatened her with a knife and told her if she screamed, he would stab her. The woman told police he demanded her car, but the woman responded asking why he was doing this to her. The man ran when another car drove by. In his interview Thursday with police, Harris admitted to using a knife in this attack and admitted to running from the scene before anything could happen. 

May 28, 2017
Location: 5600 Babcock
The victim was walking into her apartment when a man pushed his way in and put a gun to her face. The man stole the woman's phone and iPad mini after raping her. During a recorded interview, police say Harris confessed to the sexual assault.

Authorities had identified Harris, a John Marshall High School graduate, as a possible suspect in the string of crimes and contacted NISD police for assistance in getting DNA evidence. An affidavit says an NISD officer recognized Harris and saw him drinking out of a straw on June 1, Harris' last day of school.

When Harris left the cafeteria, a custodian performing regular cleaning duties collected the straw and gave it to the NISD police officer who submitted it to the San Antonio Police Department for DNA testing.

On June 8, an affidavit says forensic experts contacted the Special Victim's Unit and said the DNA collected from the straw matched six cases.

Harris was arrested at North Star Mall on Friday and taken in for questioning. An affidavit says Harris admitted to sexually assaulting a woman at knife point on May 28," and a couple other females dating back to 2015." Harris also confessed to using a gun and a knife in his attacks, the document said.

Harris is facing four aggravated sexual assault charges, one aggravated robbery charge and one attempted sexual assault charge. He's being held on a $750,000 bond.

Click the pins to read more about Harris' alleged crimes:

 

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About the Authors:

Courtney Friedman anchors KSAT’s weekend evening shows and reports during the week. Her ongoing Loving in Fear series confronts Bexar County’s domestic violence epidemic. She joined KSAT in 2014 and is proud to call the SA and South Texas community home. She came to San Antonio from KYTX CBS 19 in Tyler, where she also anchored & reported.