Authorities at Western Carolina University have unearthed digital evidence allegedly linking Sean Williams, a former business owner from Johnson City, Tennessee, to over 50 instances of sexual assault.
The evidence was found following the filing of a search warrant affidavit in Jonesborough.
Williams, who had been on the run for nearly two years on felony ammunition charges, was apprehended earlier this year in North Carolina. His arrest came after authorities discovered him in possession of three-fourths of a pound of cocaine and almost a pound of methamphetamine.
The recent warrant was aimed at accessing additional phones and computers seized by the Johnson City Police Department in September 2020. These devices were confiscated during an investigation into a woman's near-fatal fall from Williams' fifth-floor apartment, according to WGHP.
Two other warrants were filed in June and July, seeking Williams' DNA and other physical evidence. These filings suggested probable cause for Williams' involvement in two rapes in November 2019 and November 2020. Both incidents were allegedly captured in video or photographic form.
The digital evidence retrieved from the devices in North Carolina revealed sexual assaults of not only the two women but also three others who had lodged sexual assault complaints with JCPD between June and November 2020.
"Within these files, your affiant has identified approximately 52 female victims which are depicted in digital images or videos being sexually assaulted by Williams," wrote Mike Little, Tennessee First Judicial District Criminal Investigator, in his request for a search warrant in late May.
"These assaults all appear to occur while the female victims were in an obvious state of unconsciousness and are identifiable as having occurred at Williamss apartment at 200 E. Main Street in Johnson City"
Little's affidavit, supporting a search warrant, sought access to four phones, four computers, and three memory cards owned by Williams. The affidavit also suggested probable cause that Williams had sexually assaulted at least two children at his apartment.
The affidavit indicated "that Williams has participated in the various sexual based offenses for an ongoing and sustained time period." Consequently, it deemed "the likelihood of additional images being stored on other digital devices belonging to Williams highly likely, if not probable."
Despite the mounting evidence, Williams has not yet been charged with any sexual assaults. He faces additional charges after reportedly attempting to escape from the Washington County Detention Center on July 23.
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