Serial rapist with links to unsolved cases sentenced to life in prison

Bertha’s mug shot from 1995 (Source: Meck County Sheriff)

CHARLOTTE (QUEEN CITY NEWS) – A serial rapist involved in several unsolved cases in Charlotte was sentenced to life in prison Monday, the Mecklenburg County District Attorney’s Office announced Tuesday.

Unsolved case solved: CMPD makes arrest for sexual assault in 1995

A jury found LJ Bertha, 64, guilty of first-degree rape, second-degree rape, first-degree kidnapping and robbery. Bertha was sentenced Monday to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

According to court documents, in October 1993, a woman was parked at a mall on Freedom Drive when Bertha kicked out the driver’s side window and forced her to pull over and let him drive before sexually assaulting her and threatening to kill her. The victim was found nearby by police and serological tests were later conducted. In 2023, Bertha was confirmed as a suspect.

Court documents also stated that in 1994, a woman was walking on Beatties Ford Road when Bertha approached her and sexually assaulted her while armed with a box cutter. Serological tests were later conducted and Bertha was confirmed as a suspect in 2023.

Both victims, as well as a third victim who was attacked in 1996, testified during the trial. Bertha had already been convicted of the 1996 attack in 1997 and sentenced to 20 years in prison.