The arrest of a man tied to at least two sexual assaults in the Orlando area 19 years ago has led the Orlando Police Department to change the policy on how long it storages evidence from sexual assault kits.
The unsolved sexual batteries occurred in 2002 and 2003 in Orlando and nearby Orange County. The offender, now identified as Dwight Harris, would wait for women to return to their apartments, alone, after a night out. In both cases, Harris allegedly attacked the victims from behind, threatened them with a knife, and then physically ragged them to a nearby wooded area just past the tree line where he raped them. For this reason, the police referred to him as the “Woodline Rapist.”
The two cases resurfaced when investigative reporter Greg Fox started probing to learn more about any remaining evidence in the cases. Taking another look, the Orlando Police Department (OPD) submitted the unknown DNA from the rape kits to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) Genetic Genealogy Investigations program. Together with Parabon Nanolabs—a regular partner for FDLE—the team was able to identify four persons of interest from the DNA and genetic genealogy research.
Further investigation by OPD SVU detective Graham Cage narrowed it down to two, and then finally one—Harris, who was still in the area living “a normal life, as if nothing happened,” according to Orlando Police Chief Orlando Rolón.
“We think he is tied to more,” said OPD Lt. Frank Chisari. “It’s very common for victims of sexual assault and battery to not come forward. Part of us putting this forward in the media is to help victims come forward in the future. It helps other survivors.”
OPD and FDLE are both reviewing cold cases in the area to see if there are any additional unsolved cases with links to Harris. They have already found one involving a woman in 2011. Although there is no DNA evidence, Chisari said Harris has been “investigatively” tied to the sexual assault and the agencies are working with the victim on next steps.
Harris had never been arrested before, was not on a suspect list and his DNA was not in any law enforcement database. Rolón credited the ability of today’s technology to build a better genetic profile, as well as much larger public databases as key components of moving the case toward arrest.
Still, the nearly 20-year-old cold case brought specific issues to light for Rolón and his team.
“We have determined there is a need for us to hold on to evidence from sexual battery cases longer than what is expected,” Rolón said at the press conference announcing Harris’ arrest.
Now, OPD will be properly storing sexual assault kits and other evidence from assaults and rapes for 50 years.
“There is always an opportunity for something else to come up, always something else that can help identify an offender,” said Rolón. “The chances are [high] that there are some [solvable] cases in the past that are no longer in our possession. We can’t use those cases any longer—and we don’t want that to happen again. There is always a chance. Maybe using something we’re not even thinking about using today.”
Chisari said it “future-proofs” the department for the advances we’re likely to see over the next 50 years, just as we have the previous 50.
“We are sending a clear message that if you commit an offense, chances are technology will continue to improve, and we will identify you,” concluded Rolón.
Photo credit: OPD.