The department said the Cold Case Sexual Assault Unit, which is funded through two National Sexual Assault Kit Initiative project grants totaling $1,518,66, recently made significant arrests.
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For example, last year, unknown male DNA from a Durham case was matched with to two different 2007 cases out of Florida. Investigators learned that in February of 2007 a woman was sexually assaulted in Key West and then in May of 2007 a woman was sexually assaulted in Ft. Lauderdale.
Last week, the suspect was indicted on charges of Second-Degree Rape, First-Degree Kidnapping and Second-Degree Sexual Offense.
In addition, police said they were able to solve a 2015 cold case in which a man wearing a mask and armed with knife broke into a woman's home who he did not know and sexually assaulted her.
The sexual assault kit was submitted for testing in 2018 as part of the untested kit initiative.
Durham investigators received a hit in November 2020 and investigators obtained indictments charging a 27-year-old man with First-Degree Rape and First-Degree Burglary.
The man was arrested in early October of 2020 in Texas for Illegal Re-entry into the Country and was in the custody of the US Marshals in Texas.
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Regarding sex assault kit testing, as of the end of February 2021, 270 kits had been tested and investigators had received 73 CODIS hit notifications.
As a result of the 73 CODIS hits, 13 people have been charged in connection with 17 cases so far.
April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month. Here are some resources:
Durham Police Department Cold Case Sexual Assault Unit and Special Victims Unit: (919) 560-4440
Durham Crisis Response Center
North Carolina Coalition Against Sexual Assault (NCCASA)