Man convicted after DNA links him to 20-year-old rape case

A man who raped a teenage girl nearly two decades ago has been jailed in the United Kingdom after new DNA evidence helped finally identify and convict him, according to BBC.

The assault took place in October 2006 in Shefford, a town in Bedfordshire, England.

Kennedy Jimmy, who was 25 at the time, met the girl and her friend in a supermarket car park. Police said that when the victim's friend briefly went into a nearby shop, Jimmy pulled the teenager into the back of a car and raped her.

Despite what authorities described as an extensive investigation at the time, officers were unable to identify the suspect. The victim knew him only by the name 'Kenny', and the case remained unsolved for years.

The breakthrough came after a specialist review of historical rape and sexual assault cases by Bedfordshire Police’s major crime unit.

Advances in forensic science led to a DNA match, which ultimately identified Jimmy as the suspect. He was arrested in November 2022.

Jimmy, now living in Staffordshire, was later charged and stood trial at Luton Crown Court. Following a five-day trial in October, he was convicted of rape.

On Friday, he was sentenced to six years in prison. The court also imposed a life-long restraining order, preventing him from contacting the victim.