Earlier in the week Sgt. Larry Tolpin of the Special Victims Unit said detectives had collected DNA samples from two persons of interest and were waiting for lab results to confirm a match to the perpetrator’s DNA.
According to police, the victim was reportedly assaulted around 9:30 p.m. July 14.
She told police that she was walking on a bike path when a man in his 20s grabbed her hand and led her near a brick commercial building. She reported being pushed to the ground and raped, Tolpin said.
Police said she walked home and told her son about the attack. She was treated at a local hospital and a rape exam was performed during which DNA evidence was collected.
By Saturday afternoon, news of Mpanurwa’s arrest had gotten around to neighbors in the area. Thomas Edgington, whose garage faces the bike path, said he felt “blessed” that an arrest had been made.
“The bike path should be monitored … and I know the cops are busy,” he said.
“But this bike path at night can be rough.”
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