Wichita ? A man whose arrest on minor charges sparked speculation of a possible link to the BTK serial killings claims his home was illegally searched by police.

A BTK-related tip last month pointed authorities to Roger Valadez, 64. After police discovered Valadez had outstanding warrants for trespassing and housing violations, his home was searched. Three days later, police said they had excluded Valadez from the BTK investigation.

“I don’t think you can lawfully kick down a citizen’s door to execute a warrant for a mouth swab for DNA the day you get the warrant,” said Dan Monnat, Valadez’s lawyer. “There’s no emergency. The DNA is not going to disappear.”

After Valadez’s arrest Dec. 1, he was taken to jail on misdemeanor warrants, but he was not shown a search warrant that night, Monnat said.

Another lawyer for Valadez, Craig Shultz, said his client was considering suing the city.

The killer is linked to eight unsolved homicides that terrorized Wichita, the first in 1974. BTK stands for “Bind, Torture, Kill.”

On Tuesday, more than 100 people gathered to pray for the capture of the suspect. “We are asking BTK to surrender and do the right thing,” said the Rev. Terry Fox, pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church, where the service was held. “We want to stop the senseless killing.”

The Rev. Pat Bullock, director of missions for the Heart of Kansas Southern Baptist Association, said it was important for Christians to come together and pray about the killer.

“God can hear us as we pray. He can do great things,” he said.

Deputy Police Chief Robert Lee, who attended the rally, said the prayers were appreciated.