Police charge man with sexual assault three decades ago

Police have charged a man with a crime he committed over thirty years ago.

To solve the case, Special Crime Squad homicide detectives used new investigative techniques in genetic genealogy.

As a result, a 54-year-old Kingsley man was charged with a sexual assault that allegedly occurred in 1991 – police may have solved the case nearly 33 years later.

Police allege that on October 25, 1991, a thirteen-year-old boy was riding a bicycle on the Carine Open Space.

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That day, at quarter past four in the afternoon, the boy met a man he did not know.

This man held him down and then sexually abused him.

Special Crime Squad Detective Superintendent Rohan Ingles said the way the case was solved showed that innovations in genetic genealogy research combined with “traditional detective work” were leading to an increasing number of historical crimes being brought to justice.

“Forensic evidence from the crime scene led to the Investigative Genealogy Team (IGG) being involved in the case in early 2024, resulting in the compilation of a family tree involving almost 3,500 individuals,” Detective Superintendent Ingles said.

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“Through methodical, hard work, the IGG team was able to narrow down the sample, which led to the Special Homicide and Crime Team conducting further investigations and arresting the man for a crime he allegedly committed over 30 years ago.”

The man is accused of one count of “deprivation of liberty” and two counts of “aggravated sexual assault.”

He appeared before the Perth Magistrates Court today.