DNA evidence helped link a Denver man to a series of sexual assaults that put an Aurora neighborhood on edge, Aurora police said Tuesday.

Cameron Washington, 30, is being held in the Arapahoe County Jail and faces charges that include sexual assault, burglary, felony menacing and theft. The charges stem from one of three attacks that occurred in a one-block area over eight days.

Sex assault detectives interviewed him and are confident of his involvement in all three cases, police spokesman Frank Fania said.

The first assault was reported Nov. 22, and the second six days later. In both cases, women told police a man entered their apartments and woke them before sexually assaulting them.

In a third case reported Friday, police said a woman woke up screaming at her attacker, which caused him to run away.

The attacks happened between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. at a pair of apartment complexes in the 800 block of South Chambers Road. Fearful women began installing extra locks on their doors while police searched for the suspect.

Their efforts were complicated because none of the victims could offer a detailed description of the man.

Aurora detectives delivered evidence from the cases to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, which traced the DNA to Washington, police said. His DNA was already on file because he is a convicted felon. Court records show he pleaded guilty to a 2008 burglary in Arapahoe County.

Regardless of the arrest, women in the area should remain vigilant, Fania said.

"They should feel a lot safer knowing this monster is off the street," he said.