KVUE — Police say 43-year-old Darren Vann, charged with aggravated sexual assault in Austin in 2009, is the same man who confessed to killing at least seven women in Gary, Indiana.

Chelsea Whittington, a spokeswoman for the City of Gary, said Vann moved to Gary from Austin in 2004 and was divorced. She confirmed that he had previously been convicted of a sex crime, but did not provide any further detail.

According to an arrest affidavit, Vann attacked a woman at his Austin apartment in December 2007. The affidavit says Vann tried to strangle her, then began hitting and sexually assaulting her.

Public records show that Vann was found guilty of a lesser charge of sexual assault (downgraded from aggravated sexual assault) in 2009. He was sentenced to five years in jail and served time at the Texas Department of Criminal Justice in Huntsville. Vann is registered as a sex offender in Texas but is classified as "low risk."

On Monday, police said they have found the bodies of seven women in northwest Indiana. Vann allegedly told police he had killed "several" women, possibly dating back two decades.

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