A DNA match has tied a former police officer to some of the crimes attributed to a California serial killer believed to have been behind at least 12 homicides and 45 rapes in the 1970s and '80s, police officials say.

Key points: Joseph James DeAngelo is linked to 175 crimes

Joseph James DeAngelo is linked to 175 crimes Attacker broke into homes while single women or couples were sleeping

Attacker broke into homes while single women or couples were sleeping Victim says "it's just so nice to have closure"

Joseph James DeAngelo, 72, who was fired from the Auburn Police Department, was arrested after a DNA sample came back as a match to the 'Golden State Killer', Sacramento County District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert said.

He has been linked to a total of more than 175 crimes between 1976 and 1986.

Officials said Mr DeAngelo had been arrested on suspicion of committing four killings in Sacramento and Ventura counties and charged with two counts of murder in the Ventura case.

"We knew we were looking for a needle in a haystack, but we also knew that needle was there," Ms Schubert said.

"We found the needle in the haystack and it was right here in Sacramento.

"The answer was always going to be in the DNA."

Armed with a gun, the masked attacker terrorised communities by breaking into homes while single women or couples were sleeping.

Joseph James DeAngelo allegedly often took souvenirs, notably coins and jewellery, from his victims. ( AP: Sacramento County Sheriff's Office )

He sometimes tied up the man and piled dishes on his back, then raped the woman while threatening to kill them both if the dishes tumbled.

He often took souvenirs, notably coins and jewellery, from his victims, who ranged in age from 13 to 41.

Mr DeAngelo was fired from the Auburn Police Department in 1979 after he was arrested for stealing a can of dog repellent and a hammer from a drug store, according to Auburn Journal articles from the time.

The FBI said it had a team gathering evidence at a Sacramento-area home linked to Mr DeAngelo.

Jane Carson-Sandler, who was sexually assaulted in California in 1976 by a man believed to be the so-called 'East Area Rapist', said she received an email on Wednesday from a retired detective who worked on the case telling her they had identified the rapist and he was in custody.

"I have just been overjoyed, ecstatic. It's an emotional roller-coaster right now," Ms Carson-Sandler said.

"I feel like I'm in the middle of a dream and I'm going to wake up and it's not going to be true. It's just so nice to have closure and to know he's in jail."

Ms Carson-Sandler was attacked in her home in Citrus Heights, California.

'No-one thinks they live next to serial killer'

FBI and California officials in 2016 renewed their search for the 'East Area Rapist' and announced a $US50,000 ($66,077) reward for his arrest and conviction.

As he committed crimes across the state, authorities called him by different names. He was dubbed the 'East Area Rapist' after his start in Northern California, the 'Original Night Stalker' after a series of Southern California slayings, and the 'Diamond Knot Killer' for using an elaborate binding method on two of his victims.

He was most recently called the 'Golden State Killer'.

Authorities decided to publicise the case again in 2016 in advance of the 40th anniversary of his first known assault in Sacramento County.

Neighbour Kevin Tapia, 36, said when he was a teenager, Mr DeAngelo falsely accused him of throwing things over their shared fence, prompting a heated exchange between Mr DeAngelo and Mr Tapia's father.

He said Mr DeAngelo could often be heard cursing in frustration in his backyard.

"No-one thinks they live next door to a serial killer," Mr Tapia said.

"But at the same time, I'm just like, he was a weird guy. He kept to himself. When you start to think about it you're like, I could see him doing something like that but I would never suspect it."

AP