U.Va. suspect charged in 2005 D.C. area rape
FAIRFAX, Va. — Jesse Matthew, the suspect in custody related to the abduction of University of Virginia student Hannah Graham, has been indicted by a grand jury on charges related to a 2005 rape.
According to the indictment by a Circuit Court grand jury in Fairfax County, Va., Matthew, 32, has been indicted on charges of attempted capital murder, abduction and sexual penetration with an object for sexually assaulting a 26-year-old woman in Fairfax, on Sept. 24, 2005. The woman survived the attack and has worked with investigators, Fairfax County prosecutor Ray Morrogh said.
"The victim is grateful to the lead detective,'' said Morrogh. "He promised her he would never give up, and he didn't.''
During a news conference Monday, Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney Ray Morrogh did not elaborate on the charges against Matthew "because it is essential to protect the integrity" of the case.
"There are very few details I can give on the case," he said.
Morrogh said Fairfax County is asking for a bench warrant Thursday.
"And I expect shortly after that Mr. Matthew will be brought up here," he said.
A court date has not been set for Matthew in Fairfax.
The death penalty is not available on these charges because the victim is still alive, Morrogh said.
Prior to the news conference the City of Fairfax Police Department released a statement.
"Because this case is now in the judicial system, it is not appropriate for the Police Department to release or discuss any investigative or evidentiary information. To help attain the objective of a successful prosecution, any information of this nature should henceforth come from the Office of the Commonwealth's Attorney or at appropriate points as the case proceeds through the judicial system."
Matthew was arrested Sept. 24, 2014, as he camped on a beach near Galveston, Texas, several days after Charlottesville police issued a warrant for him. He is now in Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail, about 100 miles southwest of Fairfax, charged with abduction with intent to defile — a felony that under Virginia law compels suspects to submit to DNA testing.
Matthew also has been linked to the 2009 death of a 20-year-old Virginia Tech student, Morgan Harrington, who disappeared after a concert in Charlottesville, Va. Police have said forensic evidence from Harrington's killing is linked by DNA to the 2005 rape. No charges have been filed in the Harrington case.
Two years after Harrington's remains were found, the FBI released a sketch of the suspect in the case.
On Saturday, during a search for Graham, police found human remains roughly six miles from where Harrington was found three months after she disappeared.
Graham's disappearance is now being treated as a death investigation after the remains were found, officials said.
The remains were turned over to the state medical examiner, and there was no word on when results and identification would be ready.
The 18-year-old sophomore has been missing since Sept. 13 after she was seen on surveillance footage with Matthew in downtown Charlottesville.
Matthew's attorney recorded a message on his law office telephone saying he was not commenting on the case.
Investigators across Virginia have been pouring over records to determine whether Matthew is connected to other cases of missing or murdered young women.
The Newport News Police Department confirmed Sept. 30 that they are re-examining two cold cases involving girls who went missing in 2003.
In the Fairfax case, authorities said the victim was grabbed from behind as she was walking home from a supermarket about 10 p.m. Sept. 24, 2005. Police said the woman was grabbed from behind, taken to a wooded area and assaulted, the Washington Post reported.
Contributing: Bill Welch and Bryan Alexander, USA TODAY; WVEC-TV, Hampton-Norfolk, Va.; The Associated Press
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