Local News

Springfield Stabbing, Rape Suspect Captured in Georgia

By Hannah Sparks

October 17, 2014

1 minute to read

A Springfield man suspected of raping and stabbing three teenage girls was apprehended in Georgia on Thursday after several weeks on the lam.

Tips from the public helped authorities capture Peter Wray, 34, at a shopping mall near Atlanta.

NECN reports that Wray is currently being held in Georgia on a fugitive charge and is awaiting extradition to Massachusetts. He faces charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, rape, and kidnapping after allegedly attacking three female teenagers at a house party last month.

The victims, aged 16 through 18, had fallen asleep at the party when Wray allegedly tied them up and put hoods over their heads before stabbing and raping them, according to MassLive.

The victims were eventually able to untie themselves, escape, and call police.

Meanwhile, Wray allegedly stole his mother’s car and left the state with his girlfriend and young child.

The Springfield Police Department faced criticism after it waited five days to release information about the crime. According to MassLive, the delay was out of consideration for the victims, who police thought would be further traumatized by the release of information. Police also did not believe that Wray was still in the area and therefore thought he posed no threat to the public in Western Mass.

Investigators also believed that releasing information to the media may have tipped Wray off, and the delaying the release might help them catch Wray faster.

This is not the first time Wray has been accused of sexual assault. He is Level 3 sex offender, convicted of rape and abuse of a child in 1992 and indecent assault and battery on a child younger than 14 in 1994.

In addition to the charges he is currently facing, Wray also failed to register as a sex offender and is under investigation for violations of the federal Adam Walsh Child Protection Act by U.S. Marshals, MassLive reports.