JEFFERSON COUNTY • The man accused of sexually assaulting two women and fatally shooting a third at a Catholic Supply store in St. Louis County last month is now a suspect in an assault and home invasion in rural Jefferson County, a sheriff’s official said Thursday.

Jefferson County Sheriff’s Capt. Gary Higginbotham said that a 77-year-old woman reported the Sept. 27 assault, but investigators had little to go on until the woman spotted Thomas Bruce’s picture in the media after he was charged.

“Originally our case was pretty thin,” he said.

Higginbotham said that the department is not releasing much information about the attack and said the investigation is ongoing.

“I want to make sure we got the right guy,” he said.

Investigators have not spoken to Bruce because of the pending charges in St. Louis County, and are waiting on results of search warrants and DNA testing, Higginbotham said.