INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The University of Indianapolis has launched an online learning platform designed to make college more flexible and affordable for working adults.

The university says UIndy Online, which will be offered beginning in the fall semester, will go beyond the traditional classroom. “As it shifts online, we have three new programs that we’re offering, said Chris Plouff, provost and executive vice president at UIndy.

The undergraduate degree programs include a bachelor’s degree in elementary education for paraprofessional educators, a bachelor’s degree in health sciences, and a bachelor’s degree in organizational leadership.

Students can enroll in accelerated seven-week courses with tuition set at $400 per credit hour. Plouff said, “We are offering a lot of new incentives for a lot of students who are coming into the programs. We have our first course free for a number of the students who apply to the program who come from any of our corporate partners, as well as any area community college.”

Veterans, and active-duty and reserve military personnel, and their families will also be eligible to have their first course free.

Plouff said the move is meant to reduce financial barriers while helping meet workforce needs across the state. “Because of the flexibility and how we build the program to be able to be workforce ready, as students come out of them, that the students will have lots of opportunities to be able to engage with their programs out in the fields of study while they’re doing that as well as being able to do that flexibly around their schedules.”

“We’re starting classes this fall, so we’re going to be ready to go in August with the program. Students are signing up today. We’ve had a number of students already contact us about getting started, and we’re really excited about launching those programs.”

UIndy is a private college affiliated with the United Methodist Church.

A man investigators believe is a serial rapist is in custody more than 13 years after the first case was reported to police.

All of the rape investigations took place in the same area of the city’s north side between 2013-2024. The Marion County Prosecutor announced May 6 that Leonel Catalán-Torreblanca is facing 30 counts tied to the cases.

The 49-year-old’s charges include rape, sexual battery, criminal confinement, kidnapping, burglary and strangulation. Catalán-Torreblanca, who is in the country illegally, had his DNA collected during an unrelated Homeland Security Investigations case. It was matched to the rape cases using the FBI’s DNA database, CODIS.

The details about how Catalán-Torreblanca entered the country or what the other investigation was about were not released. He’s been in custody since April 23.

“This arrest is a clear reminder that advances in DNA technology and the FBI CODIS database are powerful tools in identifying and apprehending violent offenders,” said FBI Indianapolis Special Agent in Charge Timothy J. O’Malley.

“For years, investigators refused to let these survivors be forgotten, continuing to pursue every lead until DNA technology identified the defendant,” Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears said. “No matter how much time passes, our commitment to seeking justice never wavers.”

A probable cause affidavit for his arrest, listing the details of each rape, paints a picture of a man who would sneak into women’s apartments, sometimes wearing a mask and gardening gloves. He would try to cover their mouths and faces with their own clothing or items before leaving after the violent assaults.

“These aren’t just cases. These are real victims and lives forever changed,” IMPD Deputy Chief of Investigations Kendale Adams said. “We recognize all that these victims endured, and I hope this arrest sends a clear message. IMPD will continue to work relentlessly to hold offenders accountable and seek justice for those who are victimized.” 

Leonel Catalan-Torreblanca’s DNA allegedly tied to 5 rapes

At 2:45 p.m. on Jan. 1, 2024, police were called about a welfare check at an apartment complex in the 9500 block of Benchmark Drive.

The woman they met at the scene told detectives it was around midnight that she awoke to a man standing over her bed. After sexually assaulting her, he instructed her to sit inside the tub in her bathroom. She stayed in the tub for hours unsure if he had left. At some point she ran warm water because she was cold.

When she saw it was daylight outside and didn’t hear any noise, she grabbed a pair of scissors and ran out the front door to get help from a neighbor. She was taken to St. Vincent Hospital for an examination.

Police report of a rape at the same complex in 2016

At 5:56 a.m. on Oct. 23, 2016, police were called to a nearby apartment complex at a unit in the 9500 block of Guilford Drive. A woman told a detective that she fell asleep around 3 a.m. on her couch; when she woke up, feeling hot, so she opened her patio door and left the screen door closed.

Around 4 a.m., she woke back up to a man standing in front of her. He tied a shirt around her mouth and took one of her scarves to tie her hands behind her back.

During the assault, she asked him why he was doing this, and court documents state that he said, “Because I like it and because I like you.” After the assault he left through the patio door.

Another police report at the same complex in 2016

The month before, at 7:46 a.m. Sept. 3, 2016, police were called to the same apartment complex one street over in the 9500 block of Carlyle Drive. A woman told police a man had come into her apartment and raped her, according to court documents, and she was taken to Community Hospital North for an exam.