Bobby Joe Helms, who is also known as the "Hyde Park Rapist," was convicted many years ago of committing a series of violent rapes against women in the Tampa area. Helms, who is 52 years old, confessed to 13 of the sexual attacks and ultimately spent 13 years in a state prison. He was eventually released and has resided at various addresses in Brevard County for at least the last one and a half years, law enforcement officials say. Most recently, he has been living in an apartment complex in Melbourne.
Although he has completed his prison sentence, Helms has remained on probation. He was arrested last week after police determined that he had been keeping the company of teenaged girls, including one 16-year-old girl in particular. Her parents were displeased with the situation, although both Helms and the girl claim their relationship was a mentor/mentee friendship rather than a romantic relationship, says Florida criminal lawyer John Musca. Investigators are still looking into their assertion, although that may not matter for Helms. Nis neighbors say that they spotted several teenaged girls coming and going from his home on a daily basis, but that Helms nonetheless "seemed like a nice guy" and that "none of it adds up," discussing his relationship with the young girls.
Helms is back in jail in Brevard County for violating his probation. As a condition of his probation, Helms was not to be in the company of any minors. He was placed under arrest after deputies from the Sheriff's Office observed Helms with the 16-year-old girl, whom he had met at a local college, in his car approximately a mile from his apartment.
If you have been accused of a sex crime or violation of probation in the state of Florida, contact the criminal defense team at Musca Law to discuss the facts of your case as soon as possible.
