11/05/2006

Republican-American (Waterbury, CT)
By BEN CONERY

Suspect under broad scrutiny

Police to cast wide net for past crimes

NEW TASK FORCE TO EXAMINE PAST

Authorities formed a task force Friday to determine if John Regan was involved in sex crimes here and in other states.

Regan, who is accused of trying to abduct a high school girl in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., remained hospitalized recovering from a suicide attempt.

Police in New York said the 200-pound Regan grabbed a 17-year-old girl around the waist on Monday and tried to drag her into his van. The girl managed to fight free and police arrested Regan shortly after. Police said they found rope and a camera in his van.

Waterbury Police Superintendent Neil O'Leary also confirmed that state troopers from Massachusetts were in Waterbury on Friday to investigate whether Regan was involved in at least one similar case in Massachusetts.

Regan, 49, faces three separate charges - kidnapping, unlawful restraint and stalking - in Waterbury.

O'Leary said Regan worked for many years as a traveling sales representative for siding companies. "We know he has traveled extensively throughout New England and New York", O'Leary said.

The task force will work to trace Regan's travels, O'Leary said.

The task force will also try to determine if Regan could be a suspect in any unsolved crimes or sexual assaults committed where he has traveled.

O'Leary said a thorough investigation will require investigators to track Regan for the last two decades. "We believe he fits the profile of a serial rapist", O'Leary said.

Waterbury State's Attorney John Connelly, whose office is working with police in the task force, said investigators will also scour the state to look for unsolved crimes Regan could be involved with.

Regan, a married father of three children, is from a prominent Waterbury family. Regan School in Waterbury is named for his grandfather Frank G. Regan.

He first attracted the attention of Waterbury police last summer, when a 21-year-old co-worker accused him of trying to force himself sexually on her. He got on top of her, but she managed to escape, police said.

Police charged Regan in August 2004 with unlawful restraint, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in jail.

O'Leary said after that arrest he thought Regan could be involved in a 1993 rape case that became a black mark on the police department. That case changed the way Waterbury police handled sex assault cases. The victim sued the department for accusing her of lying about the rape to mask an affair. She won $190,000 in damages.

O'Leary said he always suspected the culprit attended a stag party the night of the rape. The stag party was for Regan's cousin. After Regan's 2004 arrest, O'Leary said, he learned Regan had been at the party. Regan had not been a suspect until then.

Regan submitted to a DNA test, which linked him to the 1993 case, O'Leary said.

Regan was charged with kidnapping in the 1993 case because the statute of limitations on rape had run out before his arrest. He faces up to 60 years if convicted.

He was free on bonds totaling $375,000 when he was arrested in New York Monday night. Regan had been in upstate New York working on houses belonging to relatives, police said.

Police in Saratoga Springs charged Regan with attempt at second-degree kidnapping, which carries a maximum prison term of 15 years.

On Thursday, Waterbury police charged Regan with stalking the alleged victim from his August 2004 arrest. Police said Regan took photographs of the woman outside her office in Cheshire without her knowledge. Stalking carries a potential five-year term.

Police learned of the photographs after a photo technician recognized Regan's name and because unnerved that the film he wanted developed depicted women seemingly unaware their pictures were being taken.

Police said Regan sat in his van and took pictures of dozens of women.

He is being held without bond in New York.