Key dates in case of missing Virginia student

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) — The man charged with abducting missing University of Virginia student Hannah Graham has been linked to the disappearance and death of a Virginia Tech student and three sexual assault allegations. Jesse Leroy Matthew Jr., 32, has only been charged in the Graham case. Here are some key dates:

— October 2002: Matthew was accused of raping a fellow Liberty University student on the campus in Lynchburg, Virginia. A prosecutor says the matter was dropped when the student declined to move forward with the case.

— September 2003: Matthew was accused of sexual assault on the campus of Christopher Newport University in Newport News, Virginia by another student. School officials said police investigated, but the victim chose not to proceed with a prosecution. Matthew left school in October.

— October 2009: Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington disappears after attending a rock concert at the University of Virginia. Her remains are found three months later in a field. Virginia State Police say forensic evidence from Matthew’s arrest provides a “significant break” in the Harrington case. They haven’t elaborated. The FBI has previously said DNA from Harrington’s attacker matched the attacker in a September 2005 rape of a 26-year-old woman in Fairfax City.

— Sept. 12, 2014: Graham, an 18-year-old sophomore, leaves her apartment to meet friends at a Charlottesville, Virginia, restaurant.

— Sept. 13: After stopping by two off-campus parties, Graham leaves alone and sends friends several text messages, including one shortly after 1 a.m. saying she is lost.

— Sept. 17: Graham’s parents say in a statement they fear she is the victim of “foul play.” Police release surveillance videos showing Graham walking past a pub and, minutes later, running past a gas station.

— Sept. 19: Police search Matthew’s car and apartment.

— Sept. 23: Police obtain warrant charging Matthew with abduction with intent to defile, or sexually assault, Graham.

— Sept. 24: A deputy sheriff responding to a report of a suspicious person apprehends Matthew on a beach near Galveston, Texas.

— Sept. 26: Matthew is returned to Charlottesville. He is held without bond.

— Oct. 18: A volunteer search for Hannah is called off; police notify her parents that human remains that could be hers have been found.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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