A Tucson man has been convicted of raping seven women within a 12-year time span, officials say.Β
A Pima County jury convicted Nathan Loebe of 12 counts of sexual assault, five counts of kidnapping, three counts of stalking, and one count of attempted sexual assault, according to the Pima County Attorney's Office.Β
Between 2003 and 2015, the seven women reported they met a man, later determined to be Loebe, in a bar or through online dating websites, according to information provided on theΒ Pima County Attorney's OfficeΒ Facebook page.Β Β
Loebe lied about who he was and provided false names. Many of the women said they had drinks with him and "either lost consciousness or became incapacitated." He then sexually assaulted them, the attorney's officeΒ wrote.Β
The cases went unsolved until 2017 when Tucson police received a $1 million grant to clear a decades-long backlog of almost 2,000 sexual assault kits.Β
Loebe was previously identified as a suspect in several cases, but he always claimed consent, Arizona Daily Star archives show. This made the cases hard to prosecute, until DNA was tested years later and matched Loebe.
Loebe's sentencing is scheduled for April 22.
The $1 million grant received by Tucson police allows the department to send evidence to out-of-state laboratories for analysis. The grant also provides a detective that is dedicated to investigating any cases that result from the tested sexual assault kits.
Four suspects have since been identified due to the grant. Loebe is the first to be convicted.Β
