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Did man accused in serial killings have help?
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Trent Benson
Mesa police are still trying to determine whether the man accused in a series of rapes and killings had an accomplice.
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Until that is clear, court documents with extensive details about the investigation that put Trent Benson, 36, behind bars will remain sealed by the court, police said Monday.
"Due to the information in the (paperwork), they are not releasing the information until all of those leads have been exhausted," said Detective Steve Berry, Mesa police spokesman.
Benson was charged Monday in Maricopa County Superior Court with two counts of first-degree murder and four counts each of sexual assault and kidnapping.
Detectives arrested Benson at about 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday as he left Lindsay Water and Ice, a business he owns at 454 N. Lindsay Road.
Police were watching him and made the arrest once they were told his DNA matched the assailant's in the four rapes, two of which ended with the women being strangled.
He is being held in connection with:
The Nov. 1, 2004, rape and killing of Alisa Marie Beck, 21, whose body was found near McKellips Road and Country Club Drive, less than a mile from where Benson lived at the time.
The Aug. 16 rape of a 47-year-old woman who was abducted at 1:30 p.m. at Main Street and Horne and taken somewhere else and sexually assaulted.
The Oct. 14 killing of Karen Campbell, 44, whose nude body was found in the road in the 2700 block of East Leonora Street.
The Nov. 4 rape and beating of a 35-year-old Phoenix woman who was attacked at Seventh Street and Osborn Road and left for dead.
Police have made few details on the investigation public and didn't even confirm Benson's identity until after his initial court appearance almost 22 hours after his arrest.
In a new development Monday, police confirmed that Benson, who is being held without bail, drives a white four-door car.
The woman who was abducted said she was forced into a white car, and the woman who was attacked in Phoenix said there was a white car nearby.
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