Arrest made in brutal 1992 Fayetteville kidnapping, rape cold case
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (WTVD) -- A man was arrested Monday on charges related to a brutal kidnapping and rape that happened in 1992.
Fayetteville Police Department said during a news conference the case remains open, and the arrested suspect is one of three people wanted in the case.
Police identified the man arrested as 46-year-old Roy Junior Proctor. He's charged with attempted first-degree murder, first-degree kidnapping, first-degree rape, first-degree sex offense and felonious larceny.
One night in 1992, the victim was working her job cleaning offices at Lafayette Memorial Park. While toting some equipment back to her car, she was attacked and knocked unconscious.
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She woke up in the trunk of a vehicle. The three suspects took her to a wooded area where they raped her, beat her, and left her for dead.
Investigators at the time said the victim was beaten worse than anyone they had ever seen. The severity of the case is why it has remained top of mind for Fayetteville investigators.
It was actually the first cold case opened by a newly created cold-case unit in 2016. However, the case remained unsolved.
This year, DNA finally helped investigators crack the case.
Proctor was arrested in 2013 for assault on a female.
Police said during that arrest a DNA sample was not obtained from the suspect. If it had been, the case would've been solved then.
Police said Proctor has lived in Fayetteville this entire time. He is now in the Cumberland County Detention Center and is scheduled for his first court appearance Tuesday.
Fayetteville Police Chief Gina Hawkins said if Proctor refused to cooperate with investigators, the department would be asking for the public's help identifying the other two people involved in the crime.
"A shining beacon"
All of the investigators in this case said the victim was relentless in advocating for herself and others.
Lt. Michael Petty said the victim repeatedly traveled to Raleigh to advocate for legislation to help sexual assault victims. Her efforts helped pass laws that improved communication between investigating departments and cleared hurdles in rape kit testing.
"She has been a shining beacon for sexual assault victims across the country," Petty said.
Cumberland County District Attorney Billy West said the victim was selfless in her advocacy.
"She stayed with this case and this issue, in a very selfless manner, because it looked like for many, many years that her case would not be solved. Yet she continued to be dedicated to supporting others that this had happened to, in hopes that their cases may be solved with the realization that hers may never be solved."
