DNA Match Leads to Conviction 22 Years After B.C. Sexual Assault

Originally published May 29, 2024 | Updated October 8, 2026

Police in Metro Vancouver say a DNA match led to the arrest and conviction of a man more than 22 years after a sexual assault in Richmond, B.C.

Richmond RCMP said the man was convicted in October 2023 of sexual assault and break and enter in connection with an incident that occurred in December 2001. He was sentenced in April 2024 to five years in prison for each offence, with the sentences to be served concurrently.

According to police, DNA evidence collected during the original investigation did not initially match anyone in the National DNA Data Bank. The case remained unresolved until 2015, when a DNA sample connected to a separate conviction produced a match.

RCMP said the DNA evidence was subsequently confirmed by forensic testing, leading to the identification and prosecution of the man.

Editorial update — October 8, 2026: Connect FM has reviewed a privacy request concerning the continued online identification and search visibility of the individual involved in this historical case. In response, identifying information has been removed from this version of the article. This update does not change the reported court outcome or the historical facts of the case.

This report was originally published by The Canadian Press on May 29, 2024.