Schofield soldier who broke into UH dorms now linked to Waikiki rape

HonoluluAdvertiser.com

August 26, 2008

Schofield soldier who broke into UH dorms now linked to Waikiki rape

By Jim Dooley
Advertiser Staff Writer

The soldier convicted in a series of dorm-room invasions at the University of Hawai’i-Manoa has been linked by DNA to an unsolved Waikïkï rape, according to an indictment returned this morning.

Mark Heath, 21, a Schofield Barracks soldier awaiting sentencing in the UH cases, faces a new charge of raping a woman during a burglary of her Ala Wai Boulevard apartment April 7, 2007.

The prosecutor’s office said the new charge was brought after a DNA sample taken from Heath following his guilty plea in the UH case in May was matched with biological evidence collected by Honolulu police in the Waikïkï case.

Heath is scheduled to appear in court tomorrow for a request that he be released on bail pending sentencing next month in the UH cases.

But bail in the new case was set by Circuit Judge Derrick Chan at $1 million.

Prosecuting Attorney Peter Carlisle said the new charge will be used tomorrow to oppose release before sentencing.

In May, Heath admitted burglarizing female students’ dorm rooms and sexually assaulting one student.

He told police that he entered a Hale Mokihana dorm room on Aug. 19, 2007, and used a pair of
scissors to cut off the underwear worn by a sleeping 18-year-old female student.

The victim woke up and screamed and Heath told police he pushed the woman away and escaped through a fire escape door.

He also admitted breaking into two rooms at Lokelani dormitory on Nov. 25, 2007, and stealing items while the students in the rooms slept.

The crimes created “a climate of fear” on the campus, according to Deputy Prosecutor Thalia Murphy.

Heath faces a maximum of 40 years in prison for the UH cases.

Heath is a father of two children. He was divorced in June.

Heath’s lawyer, Dean Young, could not be reached for comment on the new charge this morning.

The 25th Infantry Division said today that Heath was “administratively separated” from the Army in April of this year.

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