Paul Leahy

American convicted murderer and rapist; arrested by an off-duty State Police Officer at a roadside rest stop off route 24 and charged with murder, kidnapping, armed robbery and armed assault. A convicted rapist, Leahy, an employee of Burger King at the rest stop, allegedly saw Alexandra Zapp, (b. August 24, 1972, Portland, OR) a petite but athletic young Rhode Island woman heading for the ladies' room and assaulted her there as she attempted to leave. Though she screamed and fought back, she was brutally murdered. The officer, in an adjoining men's room, heard thuds and groans from the ladies' room and investigated, finding Leahy standing over Zapp's body. The date of the murder was July 18, 2002 at abour 4:20 AM, and Leahy was convicted on September 24, 2003 and sentenced to life in prison without pssibility of parole. Leahy's criminal record began at age 18 and included a conviction in 1984 for entering the home of a 13-year-old Brockton girl, forcing her into a bathroom at knifepoint and assaulting her. After a short jail sentence, he served 13 years of a 15-year sentence for rape and, subsequent to his release, another six-month sentence for accosting a minor and asking her to perform oral sex.