Cold case detectives solve 1996 rape case
Detectives from the Cold Case division claimed their first success in East Netherlands this week when they unearthed enough evidence to arrest a man from Deventer for a 17-year-old rape case.
The woman had been raped on October 1st 1996 at Coehoornsingel in Zutphen. The now 58-year-old lady had been forced into a car by two men and taken to a deserted parking lot, where one man stood guard outside as the other raped her inside. The men then dropped her off further down the street and left. Police investigated but the investigation died off and no one was arrested.
Authorities did secure a DNA sample though, but as it did not match anyone in the database, the case grew cold. But that changed in 2013 when the Deventenaar was arrested for another crime and had to give a DNA sample as per the legal requirement for convicts. And when the Cold Case division reopened the 1996 rape case, his DNA turned out to be a match.
He was arrested and now awaits sentencing fro the 1996 rape. It is not clear if police also have a trace on the man who stood guard. The victim has meanwhile been informed of the suspect's arrest.
A dedicated team that investigates cold cases is a new phenomenon for East Netherlands. The team started operating in August 2013, in close cooperation with the Prosecutor’s Office. The 1996 rape case was their test case. “There will be others in the future. By using modern techniques to investigate evidence from old, unsolved cases, the team hopes to find new starting points that can help solve these cases,” police said. It said that scientific research has shown that investigating in cold cases leads to solving 35 percent of unsolved crimes.
