Suspect charged in Raleigh assault; police probe two others

Police investigating three assaults on women in the Glenwood Avenue area of Raleigh have charged a man in connection with one of the crimes.

Posted 8:41 p.m. Jul 10, 2009 — Updated 10:11 p.m. Jul 10, 2009

RALEIGH, N.C. — Police investigating three assaults on women in the Glenwood Avenue area of Raleigh have charged a man in connection with one of the crimes.

Billy Coleman Cates, 21, of 6149 Bushmills St., faces one count of assault on a female in connection with a June 19 attack at a Wachovia ATM, Raleigh police spokesman Jim Sughrue said.

A woman told police that waiting to use the drive-up ATM in the 3500 block of W. Millbrook Road on June 19 when a man approached her vehicle and attempted to assault her through her partially opened window.

The woman shut the window and drove away without being injured, police said. The man drove away in a light-colored, late model Chevrolet Impala and the woman called police.

Two other similar assaults occurred in the same area within days, and Sughrue said investigators are continuing to look into those cases. Police believe those attacks were committed by someone else, not Cates.

Late Friday, police released surveillance video of a suspect wanted in connection with a June 16 assault at Townridge Shopping Plaza in the 6500 block of Glenwood Avenue. The victim told police a man grabbed her from behind at about 7:15 a.m., forced her to the ground and punched her.

The other attack happened around 9 a.m. on June 22. A woman was at a Sparkling Clean Car Wash in the 4200 block of Pleasant Valley Road when a man approached her from behind and began to choke her, she told police. She was able to escape.

In each of those cases, the assailant walked away from the scene, police said.

In each case, the suspect was described as a black man. Due to the circumstances of the incidents, it was difficult for the women to estimate the man's height, police said. They described him as having a slender to medium build.

Police ask that anyone who has information that might assist in investigation to call the Raleigh Police Department’s Detective Division at 919-996-3555 or Raleigh Crime Stoppers at 919-834-HELP. Crime Stoppers pays cash rewards for tips that help solve cases.

Suggest A Correction