News
Displaying News and Event Items: 21 - 30 of 916.
DNA in 1994 California sexual assault links man to 4 Arizona cold cases
— Josh DuBose, yourcentralvalley.com, Sep 12, 2025
"A 55-year-old man implicated in a decades-old sexual assault case in Ventura County has been connected to and charged in four Arizona cold cases, officials announced.
Forensic work was recently conducted on the kit as part of the Ventura County Sexual Assault Kit Initiative, with a DNA match coming back for Ramirez, authorities said. His profile was loaded into the Combined DNA Index System by the Ventura County Crime Lab, which quickly linked the 55-year-old to four unsolved cases in Phoenix between 1998 and 2013. "
Navy diver is linked to cold case rapes in California, Indiana, Michigan and Ohio
— Jack Orleans, ksbw, Sep 5, 2025
"The Ventura County District Attorney’s Office announced Friday that, following a years-long investigation, a man has been connected to two unsolved home invasion rapes occurring in Ventura in the early 1980s.
Sean Patrick McNulty, formerly of Ventura, died in 1997 in Emmett Township, Michigan, of suicide after becoming a suspect in a rape in Bloomington, Indiana, in 1993.
He was cremated, meaning his remains couldn't be used for identification.
At the request of the Ventura County Sexual Assault Kit Initiative, Bloomington investigators searched for evidence in existence in their 1993 case and located a biological sample collected from McNulty.
As part of the Ventura County Sexual Assault Kit Initiative, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office Forensic Services Bureau oversaw the testing of two sexual assault kits collected from rapes occurring in Ventura in 1982 and 1983."
Man charged in connection with 20-year-old cold case murder of pregnant woman in Cotulla
— Gabby Jimenez, Ksat, Aug 29, 2025
"A man has been charged in connection with a 20-year-old cold case murder in Cotulla, the La Salle County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release Friday.
On July 19, 2005, the body of Valerie Laguna — who was pregnant at the time of her death — was found at Cristo Rey Cemetery in Cotulla.
“Today, through advanced forensic analysis, investigators have linked a suspect to this horrific crime,” the sheriff’s office said.
In 2021, Texas Rangers identified Laguna’s case as eligible for the DPS Sexual Assault Kit Initiative program, which is funded by the Department of Justice/Bureau of Justice Assistance."
Texas Rangers and Mineral Wells Police Department Announce Arrest in Cold Case Sexual Assault
— gilmermirror.com, Aug 20, 2025
"The Texas Department of Public Safety, Ranger Division, working in conjunction with the Mineral Wells Police Department, has arrested William Henry Lowery (W/M, 60 YOA, photograph included at left) for an Aggravated Sexual Assault that occurred on December 10th, 2016.
In 2023, this case was adopted by the Texas Ranger Sexual Assault Kit Initiative program (SAKI) under a grant from the United States Department of Justice. This grant provides funds for advanced DNA testing, including genealogy. Evidence was sent to BODE technology for SNP testing and genealogy research. Through this testing, a possible suspect was identified."
Man Accused of Faking His Death to Avoid Charges Found Guilty of Sexual Assault
— Rudy Blalock, ntd.com, Aug 14, 2025
"A Rhode Island man who authorities say staged his own death to avoid sexual assault charges was convicted Wednesday evening of raping a former girlfriend in 2008, marking the first conviction in a series of criminal cases spanning multiple states.
Nicholas Rossi, 38, whose legal name is Nicholas Alahverdian, was found guilty by an eight-person Salt Lake County jury following three days of testimony. He chose not to take the witness stand during proceedings and will face sentencing Oct. 20.
Utah authorities launched their investigation into Rossi in 2018 after DNA evidence from a decade-old rape kit identified him as a suspect. The breakthrough in the case came as part of Utah's statewide initiative to process thousands of backlogged sexual assault evidence kits, which resulted in charges against numerous previously unidentified suspects."
Man arrested in connection with 2009 kidnapping, sexual assault of a child in Peoria
— Kyra O’Connor, MSN.com, Aug 8, 2025
"Valley police have made an arrest in a nearly twenty-year-old case.
In collaboration with the Maricopa County Attorney's Office, the Peoria Police Department arrested 43-year-old Stephen Lipton in connection with a 2009 kidnapping and sexual assault of a child, a news release states.
The case went cold until DNA that was obtained from the crime was sent for further testing using grant money from the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office Sexual Assault Kit Initiative, Peoria police said. "
Phoenix police use DNA to arrest suspect in decades-old rape and kidnapping cases
— Stephanie Murray, Arizona Republic, Aug 8, 2025
"Phoenix police used a national DNA database to arrest a man linked to multiple kidnapping and sexual assault cases dating back 27 years.
Abraham Ramirez, 54, was recently arrested in connection with four sexual assault and kidnapping cases that occurred in the Phoenix area from 1998 to 2013, police said.
The cold cases went unsolved for years.
“This arrest demonstrates the excellent work of our combined investigative and forensic teams and their unwavering commitment to those who experience sexual assault trauma,” according to Donna Rossi, communications director for the Phoenix Police Department, in a news release."
