MILWAUKEE - He's a suspected serial rapist and he made his first court appearance Wednesday.
Terrence Felder is accused of raping eight women in Milwaukee since February.
Court records show that Felder admitted to the attacks and that he used a B.B. gun to threaten his victims. Police say these rapes have been going on since February.
He's charged with raping eight different women on Milwaukee’s north side. Most of the victims are in their teens and early 20's.
Wednesday, the court commissioner ordered Felder a $1 million cash bail.
“The allegations are violent. The community needs to be protected,” the court commissioner said.
He's due back in court next month.
The 22-year-old man was charged Tuesday with sexually assaulting eight victims since February.
Terrence T. Felder faces eight counts of first-degree sexual assault while armed against females ranging in age from 14 to 28. All but one are teens.
Felder committed four assaults this month alone, including two against teens who were walking together, the complaint said.
He has admitted committing the assaults, the complaint said.
Police say a 19-year-old victim from August spotted Felder on Friday afternoon as she walked down the street. She noted his license plate number and called police.
As police interviewed her, Felder drove to an area where he sexually assaulted a 15-year-old girl as she got off a bus, police have said. The girl called police.
Police arrested Felder later that day at his job in the City of Pewaukee, where he fought with officers and unsuccessfully attempted to flee, police said.
Police recovered evidence from some of the assaults while searching Felder's Milwaukee home.
In each of the crimes, Felder approached the females on the street with what they thought was a gun and forced them into a secluded area, according to the complaint.
"The method of the crime is what led investigators to think it was one person," Assistant District Attorney Kenneth Berg said Tuesday.
Investigators were trying to determine if he was involved with any other crimes, Berg said.
If convicted, he could face up to 480 years in prison.
Police arrested Felder at American TV Distribution Center Friday. This is where he works.
It has some people wondering did he assault anyone in Pewaukee?
After almost year on the loose, allegedly raping eight women in Milwaukee, police finally believe they have their man, but he didn't go without a fight.
"You never know what's going to happen where you live," Kristi Wasmund said.
Officers say the man knocked over a co-worker at the American TV Distribution Center before they got him. The woman suffered some broken bones.
Company officials would not comment about the man's employment at American TV. We’re told he worked the nightshift in shipping.
Police say the man raped mostly teenagers on the city's north side over the past year, including one 15-year old girl who spoke to TODAY’S TMJ4’s Jay Olstad.
“I was scared. My heart was pounding. I just kept saying ‘don’t shoot me, don’t shoot me.’ And he said, ‘if you don’t do what I say I’m going to kill you,’” the girl said.
In an exclusive interview, she said the man raped her in a backyard near 18th and North Friday afternoon. She just got off the bus when he apparently grabbed her.
TODAY’S TMJ4’s Jay Olstad: "Did anyone see you?”
“No, the streets were clear," the girl said.
A terrifying situation that has people wondering did the man sexually assault anyone else near his workplace in Pewaukee?
"It’s always a concern, because we live in a world that's got a lot bad things around us," Wasmund said.
Pewaukee police say there is no indication that he sexually assaulted anyone in this area, but Milwaukee police aren't so sure. They're asking anyone who believes the man assaulted them to call Milwaukee police.
One teenage victim spoke to TODAY’S TMJ4’s Jay Olstad.
The 15-year-old girl is very relieved the man is now behind bars because she says she thought the man would come back and kill her.
“I try not to think about it so I won’t cry,” the girl said.
According to the girl, it all happened Friday afternoon, just a day after Thanksgiving. She was in town visiting her family near 18th Street and North Avenue in Milwaukee.
“He just ran from behind me when I was getting off the bus and he pulled this gun out,” the girl said.
She says the 22-year-old man then forced her behind a house and raped her.
TODAY’S TMJ4’s Jay Olstad: “Was anyone around when this was happening?”
“No. There was nobody outside. The streets were clear,” the girl said.
While she was on the ground, the girl says she pleaded with the man not to kill her.
“I was scared. My heart was pounding. I just kept saying ‘don’t shoot me, don’t shoot me.’ And he said, ‘if you don’t do what I say I’m going to kill you,’” the girl said.
Twenty minutes later, it was over.
Jay Olstad: “You must have been terrified.”
“Yeah, I was so scared because he said he was watching the house too. He took my phone and if I told police he was going to call people on the phone and kill them too,” the girl said.
Police said the suspect has a criminal record for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
“We are so grateful to that 19-year-old woman who saw him on the street and called us,” Police Spokesperson Anne Schwartz said.
Now the girl, just 15 years old is warning others to be careful.
“I’ll just tell people to be safe,” the girl said.
Police aren’t aware of any other victims but they’re asking anyone else who may have been assaulted by this man to come forward.
Meanwhile, neighbors in the area of where this serial rapist struck are relieved police nabbed him.
“I have four girls and I am very relieved. My daughter goes out early in the morning, and I was very scared,” Latasha McNeal said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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