This is a composite of Wadada, a fugitive rapist from Albuquerque.
The Attack
Sarah Beard was only 17 when she started studying sociology at UNM in Albuquerque in 1988. She lived in an apartment on Grand Ave. Her mother, Susan Beard, became worried on December 8 when she hadn’t heard from her daughter in over 24 hours. In fact, no one had heard from Sarah since 1 pm on December 7.
Obtaining a key from the landlord, Susan Beard entered Sarah’s apartment. (According to papers at the time, she actually called the police who then entered the apartment). There was a sign of a struggle and blood on the floor. Calling out to her daughter, her heart in her throat, Susan heard a strange rasp coming from the bedroom. There she located her 17-year-old daughter on the bed, unconscious and bloody.
Sarah was rushed to UNM Hospital for hours of emergency surgery. Her skull was fractured from hammer blows. Her jaw was dislocated and fractured. A nerve in her eye was ripped. She had also been violently raped. Unconscious, she underwent surgery until 1 am on December 9. Her tired parents stayed with her until 2 am, when they went home for some sleep.
They were elated to hear that Sarah regained consciousness hours later on December 9. She was unable to speak due to her head injuries but she was aware of what people said to her. Her father, Jim, asked her to squeeze his hand when he said the first letter of his name. She squeezed his hand when he said J. Encouraged, he and Susan then attempted to get her to identify her attacker by going through the alphabet. Jim began to worry the first squeeze was a fluke when she had not squeezed his hand by the letter “R.” But he kept going and when he said “W,” Sarah squeezed his hand. Her parents only knew of two men in her life whose names started with W. When they asked her if her rapist was Will, she did not squeeze Jim’s hand. Then they said Wadada and she did. Wadada was a vagrant on the UNM campus who was quite well-known by all the students.
Police wanted to press charges on Wadada but they couldn’t based on just a hand squeeze. Fortunately, Sarah regained her ability to speak by Christmas Day and told the story of how Wadada had come by her apartment to borrow a small paintbrush while Sarah was in a hurry to get to class for finals. While she searched for the paintbrush, he attacked her from behind. He raped her and then chanted over her for 45 minutes, making her chant with him in order to purge herself of her sins. He also made her apologize to him for the rape he had just inflicted upon her. Then he struck her over the head with a hammer several times before fleeing her apartment.
Wadada had already skipped town by then. Though there have been sightings of him, none have been confirmed. He is still wanted on charges of aggravated battery, attempted murder, and criminal sexual penetration. Police stated that he is extremely violent and mentally ill.
Who Is Wadada?
It isn’t entirely known who Wadada is (or was), contributing to his elusiveness since Sarah’s attack. However, he was quite distinct. He was a small man, between 5’7” and 5’9”, about 140 pounds, and in his late thirties or early forties. He was believed to be a Rastafarian. He wore his hair in dreadlocks and had a slight beard. Most notably, he had a deformed right hand, which was permanently crabbed together like a claw. His right arm was withered and he had many scars on both hands, including a burn mark on his deformed right palm. He was believed to have lived in Santa Fe, Miami, and Brooklyn prior to his time at the UNM campus.
Wadada liked to wander around campus and draw. He leeched off of students and didn’t appear to have a job or place to live of his own. He claimed that he was from Guyana, but people who knew him said he had an Ethiopian or French Caribbean accent. He went by various aliases, including Wadada Va Son, Jae Son, Gerald, and Anthony Merris. He spoke English and Spanish.
Sightings of Wadada over the years have placed him in the San Francisco Bay Area and Virginia Beach. But these have never been confirmed. It is possible he fled the country. It is also entirely possible that he is now dead.
Where Is Sarah Now?
Sarah Beard currently lives in Albuquerque but appears to be very private. It is not clear what she does for a living. Since 1994, when her case was featured on Unsolved Mysteries, she has kept to herself.
For some reason, Unsolved Mysteries did not release this episode about her case in the Amazon release of Robert Stack episodes and it has gotten gradually less attention over the years. However, there are several Reddit threads about Wadada, including some comments mentioning possible sightings of him.
Sources:
https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Wadada