Michael Reese, the sex offender suspected of killing a visiting nurse in a Willimantic halfway house last month, grabbed a woman from behind in New Haven 17 years ago, raped her, squeezed her neck until she passed out and stabbed her, according to the warrant for his arrest.

The woman, who police said was looking to get paid to have sex with him, survived, despite having been stabbed in the neck, according to the warrant from his June 8, 2006 arrest. She had "significant damage to her trachea, her jugular vein and carotid artery," the warrant said.

She couldn't breathe on her own, and when police first interviewed her in the hospital, she had to communicate by writing and shaking or nodding her head, according to the warrant obtained Wednesday by Hearst Connecticut Media Group.

More recent court documents show that Reese is a suspect in the Oct. 28 death of visiting nurse Joyce Grayson, who was found in the basement of a Willimantic halfway house for sex offenders, a crime the Willimantic police chief called one of the worst he had seen in his career.

Reese was arrested the day of the homicide on misdemeanor charges and the next day on a charge of violation of probation, but has not been arrested in Grayson's death. Police have released no information about the homicide and have not released Grayson's name. Eastern District detectives with the Connecticut State Police have taken over the investigation.

The sex assault conviction that landed Reese on the Connecticut Sex Offender Registry for life happened in state Superior Court in New Haven on June 18, 2007. He was convicted of first-degree sexual assault and first-degree assault and sentenced to 25 years in prison, suspended after 17 years, followed by 10 years of probation.

According to the warrant, the New Haven assault happened on June 1, 2006 in Fair Haven Union Cemetery. A resident of Bright Street heard glass break in the street and saw a woman who was naked and bleeding standing against a fence inside the cemetery, the warrant said. He also saw a man he described as tall, yet "stocky," running out of the cemetery toward Grand Avenue.

Police eventually learned that Reese had agreed to pay $30 for sex with the woman and the two walked into the cemetery and stopped in front of a mausoleum, where Reese pulled down his pants, exposing himself, the warrant said. The woman demanded money before having sex, but Reese refused to pay, the warrant said.

The woman turned away from him to get the coat she had hung on the mausoleum door and Reese grabbed her from behind, covering her mouth with his hand and "forcibly lowered her pants," the warrant stated. She stopped struggling because she was in fear for her life, she told investigators, according to the warrant.

Reese raped her, she told police, and when she went to leave, he grabbed her neck with both hands and put her in a chokehold until she passed out, according to the warrant. The woman wasn't feeling well at the time of the interview and asked detectives to continue it at a later time, the warrant said.

The woman later told police she recalled that Reese said he worked at Lowe's and lived with his grandmother on Pierpont Street in New Haven, the warrant said. They learned from a loss prevention worker at the store that Reese fit the description, but had not reported to work since May 26, 2006.

When shown a picture of Reese in a photo array, the woman immediately pointed to him as her attacker, the warrant said.

The woman was 5 feet tall and weighed about 95 pounds at the time of the attack, the warrant said. Reese was 6-foot-1 and weighed 345 pounds, court records show.