Suspect in a 1994 Charlotte, NC Sex Assault is Identified
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department Teams with Othram to Identify the Suspect in a 1994 Sexual Assault
''Summary
In June 1994, a 39-year-old victim reported to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department that an unknown subject had broken into her residence and sexually assaulted her at knifepoint. A sexual assault kit was completed on the victim and analyzed. Additional testing of the evidence was conducted in 2018, and in 2019, the forensic samples from the scene were linked to another sex assault in Columbia, South Carolina that happened in 2010.In 2022, with the assistance of funding from the National Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI), detectives utilized forensic genetic genealogy to identify a person of interest. Forensic evidence was sent to Othram. Othram scientists used Forensic-Grade Genome Sequencing® to build a comprehensive genealogical profile for the unknown subject. Othram's in-house genealogy team used a genetic genealogy search to produce investigative leads that were returned to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department. CMPD investigators continued working the case and their follow up investigative efforts led to the collection of a DNA sample from a person of interest. The DNA profile for this person of interest matched the the DNA profiles for the unknown subject that were recovered from the 1994 and 2010 sexual assaults.
The investigation into this case is active and ongoing. As additional information develops, it will be released by the CMPD’s Public Affairs Office. Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call 704-432-TIPS and speak directly to a detective. The public can also leave information anonymously by contacting Crime Stoppers at 704-334-1600 or Charlotte Mecklenburg Crime Stoppers.''
BY KALLIE COX MAY 09, 2023
''Years of investigating and testing DNA evidence led Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police to arrest a suspect in a decades old cold case. On June 17, 1994, a 39-year-old woman was sexually assaulted at knifepoint, according to CMPD. A man, police said, had attacked her after breaking into her home. She reported the assault to police and completed a sexual assault test kit. Over the years, police would revisit the evidence, according to a news release Tuesday by CMPD. Nearly three decades of great investigative work have led to our Cold Case Unit charging a suspect in a sexual assault investigation from 1994. This past Thursday, James Wayne Ingersoll was arrested in Concord, North Carolina with the help of SLED & @ColumbiaPDSC (1/2) — CMPD News (@CMPD) May 9, 2023 Five years ago investigators finally had a lead. In 2018, and again in 2019, the DNA samples from the scene were linked to a sexual assault from 2010 in Columbia, South Carolina, CMPD said. Three years later, detectives used forensic genetic genealogy tests to identify a suspect, according to CMPD. A DNA sample was obtained from James Wayne Ingersoll, 50, and it matched both sexual assaults, CMPD officials said Tuesday.''
Read more at: https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/crime/article275233056.html#storylink=cpy