Raleigh police link man to three rapes spanning over a decade

Raleigh police say a DNA profile links a man to three rapes spanning over a decade — two in Raleigh and one in Greenville.

Kevin Earl Parker, 46, is charged with first-degree burglary, two counts of first-degree forcible rape, first-degree kidnapping and four counts of forcible sex offense in a rape and burglary that happened on Nov. 3, 2018, in the 1400 block of Beacon Village Drive in Raleigh. Parker is also charged with first-degree burglary and first-degree forcible sex offense in another case in April 2019 on Shellbrook Court in Raleigh.

A 49-year-old woman said a man entered her home on Beacon Village Drive by breaking through the sliding glass door. Police said the woman tried to fight the man but, but he said he was armed with a knife.

Tracy Leonard, who currently owns the home where the assault happened, said she was in the closing process when she learned about the crime.

"To hear they've been doing this for a while, I mean, it's concerning, but it's not surprising, unfortunately," said Leonard.

"I was surprised given what I know about the area, but I just felt bad for the previous owner."

Police said following the 2018 rape, follow-up by RPD detectives and the FBI linked Parker to a 2006 cold case from Greenville. Additional charges may be brought by Greenville Police Department.

"We're looking for basically, an unknown. What we have is a DNA profile, and then we have matches. A lot of time, we get to work with second or third cousins," said forensic genealogist Leslie Kaufman.

Kaufman said first, DNA is collected from all cases. A profile is then made from all samples and run through public data bases. Then, a family tree is made.

"What they're trying to do is build a family tree to the suspect ,and basically, what they’re looking for is the right person at the right place at the right time," said Kaufman.

"What that means is based on the family tree where that person fits into that tree based on the matches that they have."

Parker remains at the Wake County Detention Center under an $8 million bond.

"This is a generally safe neighborhood. I don't live alone. I think the previous owner did live alone," said Leonard. "We've always had pets and other people, so I've never felt anything like that but it can happen anywhere, anytime."