A Bowden Institution inmate has been charged by the Calgary Police Service's Sex Crimes Unit in connection with an assault that occurred 20 years ago.
A Bowden Institution inmate has been charged by the Calgary Police Service's Sex Crimes Unit in connection with an assault that occurred 20 years ago.
According to a press release issued Thursday (June 29), Charles Henry Desjarlais, 54, is charged with sexual assault, sexual assault with a weapon, uttering threats and kidnapping.
The press release says the attack occurred early in the morning on Thursday, Aug. 14, 1997 in downtown Calgary, when a woman was pulled into an alley, threatened, sexually assaulted, and then made to walk through back alleyways before the suspect released her and fled.
The crime remained unsolved for almost 20 years, until last November, when a man in custody on another matter turned himself in to the Innisfail RCMP, the release read.
"The Calgary Police Service Sex Crimes Unit followed up on the new information from the RCMP and reviewed multiple unsolved cases from that period to find a match. DNA evidence led investigators to lay charges in the 1997 sexual assault."
During a press briefing Thursday, Staff Sgt. Bruce Walker of the Calgary Police Service Sex Crimes Unit explained why charges weren't laid until now. He said the unit has three investigators who review cold case files. They had to match the confession to an unsolved file.
Walker said he doesn't know why the accused came forward after 20 years, but that an investigator has spoken with the victim to inform her of the charges.
Walker said there isn't currently any evidence to suggest that Desjarlais is connected to other unsolved cases, but said investigators are constantly reviewing old files and applying developments in technology.
"Better technology for DNA certainly supported this investigation," he said. "It's very satisfying that we can find closure for the victim with an offence of this nature."
Walker said the suspect is known to police, but couldn't discuss his criminal history. He confirmed that there is no public safety concern as Desjarlais was in custody at the time, and remains in custody.
The Calgary Police Service's full press release can be found here: http://newsroom.calgary.ca/police-lay-charges-in-20-year-old-sexual-assault-case/
The press conference announcing the charges can be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JnhabHE4n7Y
"Better technology for DNA certainly supported this investigation. It's very satisfying that we can find closure for the victim with an offence of this nature."STAFF SGT. BRUCE WALKER CALGARY POLICE SERVICE
