Suspect who was caught through DNA sample pleads guilty to rape, gets 20-year sentence

A Rome man who was charged through DNA evidence in connection with a rape that occurred 13 years ago pleaded guilty this morning.

Wayne Allen Crawford, 44, was arrested in May 2006 after DNA evidence matched him to the 1993 assault of a Rome woman.

He was sentenced to serve 20 years, 13 of those in prison and the rest on probation, said Assistant District Attorney John McClellan.

When the crime occurred, a suspect could not be identified because the perpetrator snuck up on his victim wearing a mask. Police collected DNA evidence from the victim, but at the time no match was found.

Another DNA sample was taken from Crawford while he was at Dooly State Prison in Unadilla on unrelated charges. As is standard for most felons, he had a DNA sample taken. Convicts’ profiles are entered into the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Combined DNA Index System or CODIS.

Since 2000, DNA swabs have been taken from almost all Georgia felons when they enter the prison system. CODIS acts like a fingerprint database for DNA profiles, enabling local, state and federal law enforcement agencies to compare profiles electronically.

When Crawford’s sample was entered into the CODIS, it matched the DNA recovered from the 1993 incident, detectives said. The first match on CODIS was not enough; a second was needed to confirm the results, which it did.