Jul 23, 2009 10:40 pm US/Eastern
Accused Serial Child Rapist Behind Bars
Accused Rapist May Have Attacked Dozens Of Kids
LEOMINSTER (WBZ) ―
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Juan Nazario arraigned in Leominster District Court last month on two counts of child rape, but investigators say he may have raped dozens of kids over the years.
Sentinel & Enterprise
The I-TEAM has discovered that a man sitting in the Worcester County Jail may be one of the worst child rapists in the state.
Chief Correspondent Joe Shortsleeve has been digging and he says it's a shocking case shrouded in mystery.
His name is Juan Nazario. The 33-year-old Leominster man was arraigned in Leominster District Court last month on two counts of child rape. But it's what police found inside his apartment on Pleasant Place in downtown Leominster that now has investigators county-wide very concerned.
MORE VICTIMS MAY BE OUT THERE
Court documents obtained by the I-TEAM indicate Nazario recorded his "assaults via a video camera" and that photographic evidence along with a detailed personal diary clearly indicates there were far more than two victims.
In fact, sources tell the I-TEAM that the Worcester County District Attorney's Office now believes perhaps dozens of children were raped by Juan Nazario over the past 15 years.
As many as 20 investigators are now working this shocking case. District Attorney Joe Early spoke exclusively to the I-TEAM and was asked by Shortsleeve if there were multiple victims.
"It may bring us there. Yes. I am not at liberty to say how many victims there are, but I can tell you we have got a lot of people working on this right now, and we want to get it right," Early said.
HIDDEN CLUES MAY LURK IN APARTMENT
We went to Nazario's Leominster apartment.
A man, who neighbors identified as a relative of Nazario, closed the door in our face when we began asking questions about what was going on inside the third story walk-up apartment.
We did learn something about Juan Nazario from what appears to be his Web page on MySpace.com.
The last log-in was a few days before his arrest in early June.
In Nazario's profile he says his favorite animal is a wolf.
He writes, "I am single...I am one of the good guys who tends to be overlooked for the bad boys."
A neighbor who did not want her name used told us about the June day Nazario was arrested.
"....and next thing I knew the cops are all here and out the door he went."
She says Nazario often took care of small children.
She told the I-Team, "He supposedly raped a 9-year-old and a 5-year-old girl. We heard about video tape and that someone found pictures on a camera."
NAZARIO HAS HISTORY OF CHILD RAPE CHARGES
Court documents confirm the presence of what prosecutors describe as a "secretive" camera.
A reliable source says Nazario may have drugged many of the children.
The I-TEAM also uncovered that in 2003 Juan Nazario was arraigned on child rape charges in nearby Fitchburg where he was living at the time.
That rape allegedly took place in 1998.
Those charges were eventually reduced to assault because as one source told us the child did not want to testify.
Nazario's occupation in 2003 was listed as a bus driver for the company Laidlaw.
Laidlaw was purchased by another company in 2007. They have refused to comment.
District Attorney Joe Early would not talk about Nazario's access to children over the years.
"I am not at liberty to talk about that part of the investigation," he said.
BEHIND BARS, BUT FOR HOW LONG?
Nazario was supposed to be back in court next Monday July 27 but WBZ has learned that could be off until late August.
In addition to state and local police officers, the State Division of Children and Families is now involve as is The Child Protection Unit at UMass Medical Center.
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