WOODBRIDGE, Va. — A Florida man is facing charges in connection to the rape and abduction of a woman while she was working as a store clerk in Woodbridge over 30 years ago.
According to the Prince William County Police Department, the woman was attacked just before midnight on Dec. 19, 1987, while working at a store on what is now Richmond Highway.
Investigators say the woman, who was then 50 years old, was working at the store when she went to use the bathroom and a stranger followed her. She was then reportedly bound and sexually assaulted at knifepoint.
The man ran from the business and managed to evade police. Detectives transferred the case to the cold case unit where, in 2021, it was reviewed and new leads were followed through advancements in DNA/genealogical testing and research.
A private lab tested DNA and a profile led police to a family living in Florida. New DNA was collected from possible matches and compared to evidence which led investigators to arrest a 52-year-old man living in Palatka, Florida on June 14. He faces charges of rape and abduction with intent to defile.
According to police, the unidentified man would have been around 16 years old at the time of the attack. Additionally, he lived near the store in 1987.
The suspect was arrested and remains incarcerated until he is extradited to Virginia.
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