Man Who Raped Sleeping Woman At Aberdeen Motel Sentenced

HARFORD COUNTY, MD — A 44-year-old Whiteford man has been sentenced in the rape of a woman who was asleep in her room at the Red Roof Inn in Aberdeen.

Earl Samuel Jones III pleaded guilty in February to first-degree rape. On Aug. 22, he was sentenced to life in prison, suspend all but 60 years to serve, and will be on supervised probation for five years after he is released and must register as a sex offender for life.

On Sept. 12, 2022, Aberdeen police were called to the inn on Hospitality Way for a report of a rape. A 36-year-old woman told officers she was asleep in her room when she was woken up by a naked man she didn't know.

The attacker grabbed her by the throat and began strangling her. The suspect threatened to kill her if she screamed, then raped her, police said.

Aberdeen Police asked in a Facebook post for help identifying the suspect and his vehicle, and an anonymous tipster named the suspect as Jones. A vehicle registered to Jones and his wife matched the type of vehicle in which the rape suspect fled, prosecutors said.

Jones’s wife contacted the detective in charge of the case and identified the pictures released on social media as her husband, provided Jones’ clothing, which matched what was worn on the video, and his cell phone.

A DNA analysis from a sexual assault examination also confirmed Jones as the rapist, authorities said. The victim drew the distinctive cursive tattoo on the suspect’s torso that closely resembled the tattoo noted on Jones when he was arrested.

Police said the victim’s boyfriend had left their room to use the vending machine, and propped the door open with the swing bar lock.

“This victim lived through every woman’s worst nightmare. Asleep, attacked and violated in the most horrific of ways, and now she is forced to forever live with the trauma of what Earl Jones did to her that September night," said State’s Attorney Alison M. Healey. "I applaud her bravery in presenting her impact statement to the court in sentencing and for her involvement with the investigation and prosecution of this case. This is another example of the aggressive and relentless manner in which my office will pursue above-guidelines sentences to seek justice for victims of violent crime."