From 1976 to 1986, one man struck fear in the hearts of Californians from Sacramento to San Francisco to Los Angeles, killing 12 people, raping at least 45 people and burglarizing more than 120 homes in meticulously planned crimes.

He was known by many names: the Golden State Killer, the East Area Rapist, the Diamond Knot Killer and the Original Night Stalker. But until last week, decades of detective work had not uncovered the name of Joseph James DeAngelo.

A statewide hunt for the suspect finally ended on Tuesday, when the authorities said that they had arrested Mr. DeAngelo, 72, and that he was responsible for the series of murders and rapes. In the end, the decades-long hunt for the infamous figure ended not far from where the case started. Here’s what we know so far about the suspect.

[In June 2020, Mr. DeAngelo agreed to plead guilty to charges, a prosecutor said.]

He was a former cop who served in the Navy

The Golden State Killer usually struck at night after carefully planning his attack, even down to the smallest details, ahead of time. He studied his victims’ schedules, broke into their homes and unlocked windows or removed screens in preparation for his return. He turned off porch lights and hid shoelaces and ropes to use later to bind his victims.