Imprisoned rapist admits to 1980 New York killing

Published June 9, 2014 8:27pm ET



ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP) — Authorities say a man known as the “Northeast Rapist” who has been behind bars since 1986 has pleaded guilty to the 1980 rape and strangulation of a 74-year-old woman in Rochester.

The Monroe County District Attorney’s Office said Monday that 57-year-old Nat Lee Jones has pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the death of Mary Hull 34 years ago.

Jones was identified through DNA analysis in 2012 after a retired Rochester police investigator re-opened the cold case. Jones had been serving a sentence of 25 to 50 years in prison for several rapes in Rochester in 1986.