DEKALB DA ANNOUNCES INDICTMENT AND EXTRADITION OF ACCUSED RAPIST WHO USED CRAIGSLIST TO LURE VICTIM

Suspect May be Linked to Additional Cases

Decatur, Ga.- A 42-year-old man has been extradited to DeKalb County after being indicted for allegedly luring a teenager to an apartment with an advertisement on Craigslist, kidnapping and sexually assaulting her.

On August 11, 2026, a DeKalb County Grand Jury indicted Julius Hunter, 42, on charges of Rape, Aggravated Sodomy, and Kidnapping, in connection with the 2016 assault of a young woman, who was 19 years old at the time.

Hunter, who was on probation in Florida after being convicted in a 2021 Felony Sexual Battery case, was arrested in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on August 13, 2026, in coordination with the U.S. Marshall's Office, the Fort Lauderdale Police Department, and the DeKalb County District Attorney's Office. He was transported to Georgia and is being held in the DeKalb County Jail without bond.

The case is assigned to DeKalb County Superior Court Judge Tangela Barrie and will be set down for arraignment. Once Defendant Hunter has been arraigned, then a trial date may be set.

According to the preliminary investigation, on July 27, 2016, the teenage girl responded to a Craigslist ad for an overnight babysitting job. The victim spoke with a man who offered her $300 to spend the night watching his children and ordered her a ride-share car.

The ride-share delivered her to an apartment complex near 700 Jolly Avenue in Clarkston. When she arrived, two black males were present, but no children. The victim tried to leave, but the man, later identified as Defendant Hunter, assaulted her and raped her over the course of several hours.

When Defendant Hunter let the victim go the next day, she got into a cab and asked the driver to call 911. She met police at a gas station and was taken to the hospital for a sexual assault exam.

In 2017, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) confirmed that male DNA was present in the sexual assault kit, but there was no match in the national Combined DNA Index System, known as CODIS. However, the DNA from the Clarkston case was a match to the DNA of an unidentified perpetrator from two other kits collected in DeKalb and Gwinnett counties in 2016 and 2017.

Authorities in Florida collected Defendant Hunter's DNA after his arrest for the 2021 Sexual Battery case. His DNA was added to CODIS, and the GBI was subsequently notified of a CODIS match to the DNA in the three DeKalb and Gwinnett kits.

Cold Case Tip Line

Since his arrest, investigators with the DeKalb County District Attorney's Office have not been able to connect with the individuals from the additional cases that matched Hunter's DNA. The fact patterns of their cases are very similar to the indicted case.

The perpetrator lured the victims using Craigslist ads soliciting women for jobs such as babysitting, modeling, dancing and massages. Some of the victims met him at the same Jolly Avenue apartment. Investigators believe Defendant Hunter may also have additional unknown victims.

Anyone who believes they have information about Defendant Hunter and his crimes or who may have been victimized by Hunter is encouraged to call the DA's Tip Line at 404-371-2444.

About the Georgia Sexual Assault Kit Initiative Task Force (GASAKI)

GASAKI was established in 2018 in partnership with the Georgia Criminal Justice Coordinating Council (CJCC) as part of a multi-year, multi-million dollar federal grant under the National Sexual Assault Kit Initiative.

The team consists of prosecutors, investigators, and victim advocates from the DeKalb County District Attorney's Office, the Cobb County District Attorney's Office, the Prosecuting Attorneys Council (PAC), and CJCC (with resources from Bridging Hope) working collaboratively to solve cold case sexual assault crimes.

Additionally, the GASAKI Task Force relies on the ongoing work and commitment of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Crime Lab.