Police call him a serial predator who walked free for decades.
This week 55-year-old Ralph Bortree was arrested for a violent attack on a woman in 1993.
But prosecutors say DNA and other evidence ties him to even more unsolved attacks on women.
10TV was in the courtroom as Bortree faced a judge for the first time.
It's been 26 years since Bortree allegedly committed the crime that brought him to court Friday.
"The state has DNA evidence, a factor of one in a trillion that was determined by BCI, that his DNA matched the DNA that was collected by the crime scene in this case. That involved a kidnapping and rape where the victim's throat was slit," said Logan County Prosecutor Eric Stewart.
The attack on the 19-year-old victim went unsolved for decades.
Logan County Sheriff's investigators took advantage of new technology to re-submit the old evidence.
They say it produced a DNA match not only in this case, but in another rape case in neighboring Shelby County.
"In 1992 we had a younger, early 20's, female who was abducted at gunpoint. She was put into a vehicle, and early model large vehicle and taken out to a remote location in the county, sexually assaulted and then brought back here to Sidney and dropped off," said Sidney Police Sgt. Rob Jameson.
Sidney Police say just blocks away, two other women were attacked, one in July 1993, the other in May 1995.
"Physical description was very similar in all three attacks, and also the method in which they occurred was very similar," Jameson said.
Police suspect Ralph Bortree in all three cases.
"We reviewed all three of these with our local prosecutor, unfortunately in Shelby county, the statute of limitations has expired on all three of these cases so we are unable to prosecute here at this point in time," Jameson said.
Stewart says the same statute of limitations prevents him from charging Bortree in the Logan County rape.
But he believes that statute doesn't apply to attempted murder, something the defense plans to argue.
"I'm going to make a motion to dismiss the entire case now and in writing as well, due to the fact that the attempt of the aggravated murder that he's charged with, is actually barred by the statute of limitations. with a 6 year statute of limitations," said defense attorney James Tyack.
The judge said he will consider that argument during a future hearing.
In the meantime, he ordered Ralph Bortree held on one million dollars bond.
A closer look at how investigators cracked this case: (PREVIOUS STORY)