French serial rapist could strike for 30 years, now he faces justice

Pont-sur-Sambre is a French commune bordering Belgium. The Sambre is the river that crosses it. In this environment, Dino Scala struck at least 56 times between 1988 and 2018. His nickname became the “Rapper of the Sambre”.

like a hunter

He often proceeded in the same way. In the morning, and on a deserted road, he attacked women from behind and dragged them into the bushes. Usually it was winter then.

The youngest victim was 13, the oldest 48. The man who was president of a local football club for several years acknowledged his actions. “I like to be secretive and hide,” he reportedly told police, according to France24. “I’m like a hunter.”

License plate piece

It wasn’t until 2018 – more than twenty years later – that the search gained momentum. A teenage girl was attacked in the Belgian border town of Erquelinnes. In the camera footage, you could see part of a Peugeot 206 and the start of a license plate. It was enough for the researchers to arrive at Scala.

The police found a knife, rope and gloves. All the while, he managed to stay out of the hands of justice. One of the victims’ lawyers spoke to the French newspaper Le Télégramme. She says Scala was able to go on for so long because he “hid his true nature”.

French justice has allocated three weeks for the case. He faces 20 years in prison.