Detectives Nab Rape Suspect Through DNA Match

A 27-year-old man has been linked to two Norcross-area rape incidents, according to a press release from the Gwinnett County Police Department.

Detectives were able to narrow down the suspect, Jerson Antonio Gomez, through a DNA "hit" on CODIS, the Combined DNA Index System. DNA samples from the two incidents were collected and submitted to the GBI Crime Lab, and they ended up matching Gomez's DNA.

Gomez's warrant charges include kidnapping and rape in the first case and burglary, rape, false imprisonment and robbery in the second case, according to the press release by Gwinnett spokesman Cpl. Jake Smith.

The suspect was already in custody at the Robert Deyton Federal Detention Facility in Lovejoy, Ga., and had been there since 2010. He was also charged with similar crimes in Emerson, Ga.

According to the release, the victims in both rape cases were 28 and 51 and took place in unincorporated Norcross.

In December 2008, the 28-year-old told police that she had been attacked as she walked along Singleton Road. The suspect was armed with a knife, and he attempted to rob her. When she told him that she didn't have any money, the release says, he dragged her into the woods and raped her.

The older woman reported her incident in January 2009. She told police that she found him in her bedroom after she arrived at her house on Kay Drive. He was armed with a pistol, the release says, and he robbed and raped the victim.

Officials said other cases are under investigation.