MIAMI – A 49-year-old man has been arrested in connection with a sexual assault case from 2014 after DNA evidence linked him to the crime, authorities confirmed Thursday.
Julio Cesar Alvarenga was taken into custody Wednesday at his Miami home and faces charges including kidnapping, sexual battery, false imprisonment, strong-arm robbery, and criminal mischief, jail records show.
3 p.m. report:
Investigators said the attack happened on the morning of Jan. 1, 2014.
The victim told Miami police she was walking to work along Northwest 12th Avenue near 30th Street when a man, who officers identified as Alvarenga, began following her.
Police said the victim tried to get away after Alvarenga told her he wanted to be with her. Shortly after, they said he grabbed her purse and glasses, forced her into a wooded area, and raped her.
She told police that Alvarenga covered her mouth to silence her cries and held her against her will for an hour and a half, according to an arrest report.
Police said surveillance video captured Alvarenga at the time, but the case remained unsolved until this January, when DNA collected from the victim’s rape kit finally yielded a match.
As of Thursday, Alvarenga is being held without bond at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.
