Custom search. Rape suspect identified through DNA evidence

Authorities are searching for 71-year-old Stephen Paul Gale, who is accused of raping two women at gunpoint at a Framingham retail store two days after Christmas in 1989. He was identified as a suspect using forensic genetic genealogy, and the case is now a reward for his capture. “We are asking that people look at these photos and that anyone with information about Mr. Gale’s current whereabouts contact either the Framingham Police Department or the U.S. Marshals Hotline,” said Marian Ryan, District Attorney of Middlesex This week, Gale has lived in a number of other states, has used aliases in the past and has previous ties to organized crime, but efforts to locate him so far have been unsuccessful, Ryan said. Authorities said the aliases Gale was known to have used were Stephen Pisarcik, John Rossi, Paul Costa, Paul DeRosa, Paul DiCarli, Paul Joseph DeCarlo, Steve Miner, Paul Williams and Paul Ptaszynski: “We will use every resource “We are doing everything we can beyond that to bring justice to these victims,” ​​U.S. Marshal Brian Kyes said at a news conference. Gale’s information is being shared nationwide and authorities announced a $5,000 reward, all in an effort to gather information leading to Gale’s arrest. Anyone with information is asked to call the Framingham Police Department at 508-532-5923. Tips can also be requested by calling the US Marshals Boston Tipline at 1-877-WANTED2 (926-8332). Victims contacted 5 Investigates in 2021 after seeing WCVB’s report that revealed the state had failed to test thousands of elderly rape cases. They later contacted the district attorney’s office, and eventually their persistence paid off. In 2022, the district attorney and Framingham police paid for an outside lab to perform forensic genetic genealogy, combining advanced DNA testing with genealogical research to find someone in the family of the rapist tree. It’s a method that has solved mysteries across the country by linking attackers to decades-old rapes and murders, not to mention identifying human remains that had gone unidentified for years. But there was another setback: They were told that even if forensic genetic genealogy could identify a person, prosecution was likely impossible because of the statute of limitations — a deadline for how long after someone can be prosecuted for a crime – had probably expired. Their frustration previously prompted them to testify last year, revealing their first names and faces. A legislative committee is backing a bill that would lift the statute of limitations on rape cases when DNA evidence is present.