Close X
Sunday, October 13, 2024
ADVT 
National

DNA match leads to conviction 22 years after B.C. sexual assault

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 29 May, 2024 11:12 AM
  • DNA match leads to conviction 22 years after B.C. sexual assault

Police in Metro Vancouver say a DNA match led to a man's arrest and conviction more than 22 years after he broke into a woman's home and sexually assaulted her. 

Richmond RCMP say Christopher Sharafi, also known as Mohammed Mendi Sharafi, was found guilty last October, and in April he was sentenced to five years in prison for the two offences dating back to December 2001.

The Mounties say the victim reported waking up to find a man standing in her room, and he then climbed into her bed and assaulted her as she tried to fight back.

They say in a statement that police collected and submitted DNA evidence for analysis, but the suspect remained unidentified until 2015, when the sample matched a known offender in the national DNA databank.

RCMP say Sharafi had been ordered to provide a DNA sample as part of a previous unrelated conviction and the Mounties' forensic laboratory confirmed the match.

They say Sharafi has now been found guilty of break and enter and sexual assault and sentenced to five years in prison for each offence, to be served concurrently.

MORE National ARTICLES

Chief of small Okanagan, B.C., brigade says 13 firefighters lost own homes to blaze

Chief of small Okanagan, B.C., brigade says 13 firefighters lost own homes to blaze
The chief of a small rural fire department in B.C.'s Okanagan region says 13 members of his own crew have lost their homes while fighting wildfires this season. Wilson's Landing Fire Chief Paul Zydowicz says wildfires burning on the west side of Okanagan Lake have been a "nightmare" due their speed and intensity. 

Chief of small Okanagan, B.C., brigade says 13 firefighters lost own homes to blaze

China wants more Canada flights after COVID-19 turbulence, despite tour-group ban

China wants more Canada flights after COVID-19 turbulence, despite tour-group ban
Beijing and Ottawa are in talks over how to increase flights between China and Canada, following an American deal in June. Transport Canada says the weekly number of flights between the two countries has dropped drastically, from more than one hundred per week in the summer of 2019 to just 10 this season.

China wants more Canada flights after COVID-19 turbulence, despite tour-group ban

Trudeau in Okanagan to meet firefighters, as final travel ban lifted for Kelowna area

Trudeau in Okanagan to meet firefighters, as final travel ban lifted for Kelowna area
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is in the Okanagan in the BC Interior to meet with firefighters, volunteers, and officials involved in the region's wildfire fight. Trudeau's visit comes after the last travel restriction of the Okanagan was lifted, alongside all previous evacuation orders within the city of Kelowna, with wildfires diminishing since after recent rainfall. 

Trudeau in Okanagan to meet firefighters, as final travel ban lifted for Kelowna area

Home invasion in Fort Nelson

Home invasion in Fort Nelson
A 36-year-old man is in custody after an alleged home invasion in Fort Nelson left a homeowner with serious but non-life-threatening injuries. Mounties say they received reports of the incident on Wednesday night, when the attacker reportedly entered a home on Boundary Road and took keys from a rack.

Home invasion in Fort Nelson

Parked vehicles damaged in Coquitlam

Parked vehicles damaged in Coquitlam
Coquitlam R-C-M-P say they are looking for additional victims and video evidence after a man damaged a number of parked vehicles in the Maillardville neighbourhood. Police say the male suspect was arrested Tuesday night after reports surfaced of someone damaging parked cars between 10 p-m and 11:30 p-m.

Parked vehicles damaged in Coquitlam

Protesters attempt to bypass RCMP wildfire blockade near Shuswap

Protesters attempt to bypass RCMP wildfire blockade near Shuswap
Protesters have tried to bypass an RCMP blockade on the Trans-Canada Highway in British Columbia's Shuswap region, amid tensions over the refusal of some residents to obey wildfire evacuation orders. Live social media videos of the incident posted Wednesday evening show about 20 protesters confronting a blockade of police cars near the lakeside community of Sorrento.

Protesters attempt to bypass RCMP wildfire blockade near Shuswap