Police fear latex catsuit rapist has returned to prey on elderly

     A MAN dressed in a catsuit and mask who attacks, rapes or steals from elderly women has struck again after an absence of more than four months, police said yesterday.
     Detectives suspect that the man has struck up to 80 times across South London in the past 15 years, attacking women, some of them in their 90s.
     The assaults stopped last autumn before resuming last week with two attacks in Catford and Dulwich in southeast London. Neither victim was sexually assaulted.
     Last Thursday the man broke into the home of an 82-year-old woman in Catford and stole Pounds 300. He got in by removing an entire window pane on the ground floor of the house without raising an alarm.
     Early on Saturday he struck again, breaking into the home of a 78-year-old woman on the Kingswood estate in Dulwich. The woman fought him off but he stole cash and jewellery, including a diamond engagement ring and two gold bracelets.
     A Scotland Yard investigation code-named Operation Minstead has linked the sex attacker to 25 incidents since October 1992.
     Police believe the man could also have carried out another 50 attacks dating back to the 1980s in London and the Home Counties.
     Three of his victims were raped and another 23 were sexually assaulted. The oldest victim was 92 and the youngest was 68.
     The attacker is thought to be an athletic,latex corsets,  light-skinned black man aged between 25 and 45 who may live in or close to the Shirley area of Croydon, where many of the attacks have taken place.
     Detective Chief Inspector Simon Morgan said crime profilers had advised them that the man could go for long periods without activity. There have been other times when he has not been active.
     It is possible that he has been in prison or an institution and may have been dealt with by police for other crimes.
     Two years ago police carried out a DNA screen on 200 burglary suspects, without success.
     The man always strikes between midnight and 4am and police believe that he watches potential victims to make sure they are alone.
     He usually uses a tool from a nearby shed to break in through a rear window. He then cuts telephone lines, turns off electricity or removes light bulbs.
     A number of the victims have been woken up by the intruder appearing in their bedrooms and shining a torch at them.
     Some have saved themselves by talking to the attacker about his mother.