WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Police in West Palm Beach announced Wednesday that a man they described as a "serial attacker" is in custody after he raped one woman and attempted to rape another late last year.
In an afternoon news conference, West Palm Beach police spokesman Mike Jachles said that Lenoris Davon Davis, 42, faces multiple charges after his arrest March 21.
Police said the first incident occurred Nov. 28 when a 35-year-old woman was walking along Division Avenue.
Davis, a West Palm Beach resident, was driving in his car and started talking to her as she was walking, offering her a ride, police said.
WATCH: West Palm Beach police announce arrest of rape suspect
Jachles said she wasn't interested, but Davis kept following the woman and tried to coerce her into his car. The situation ultimately became confrontational and police said Davis got out of the car, pulled the woman into his vehicle and attempted to rape her.
The woman was eventually able to honk the car horn and scream for help.
Jachles said he pinned her down, but she continued to fight until she finally was able to get away and run to a nearby house for help.
Second Woman Attacked
The second attack occurred Dec. 10 when a 58-year-old woman was at a gas station on Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard.
Jachles said the woman was approached by Davis in his car, asking her where he could buy marijuana.
Initially the woman told him where he could buy it and agreed to get in his car to show him where he could make the purchase.
Police said apparently he got some marijuana and the woman wanted to be dropped off, but Davis became violent and said he wanted to have sex with her.
The woman tried to escape from him, but the car door was locked. He ultimately took the woman to an old burial ground located in the 2400 block of North Tamarind Avenue where he raped her. This cemetery is the site of a mass burial for victims of the 1928 hurricane that hit South Florida.
"She had tried to get away. She was trying to fight him," Jachles said. "At one point, she had a pocketknife that apparently dropped on the floor of the car. She was able to finally get it after the rape and stabbed him in the arm."
Police said the knife yielded some DNA that led investigators to Davis.
Forensic investigators ran the DNA from the knife through a database, and it came back on a hit on Davis.
Detectives were notified April 10 that DNA submitted from the Nov. 28 case matched the rape case.
Jachles said both victims identified Davis as their attacker.
"Davis is a violent offender," Jachles said. "There's a very high probability that these are not the only two victims out there."
Police said one of the obstacles they may face is that some of the other victims could be transient.
"He is a career offender who just was released from prison in 2022, and detectives think that could be other victims out there."
Davis is being held at the main Palm Beach County jail without bond. He faces two counts of kidnapping, one count each of sexual battery by coercion/threat and attempted sexual battery.
Anyone that may be a victim or know about Davis' activities is urged to contact West Palm Beach police detective Garrett Shirey at 561-822-1624.
