ST. MARY PARISH, La (KLFY)– In St. Mary Parish five people have been arrested in connection with a 2007 rape.
A St. Mary Parish Grand Jury has issued indictments for five men after a sixteen-year-old rape case had gone cold. Franklin Police Chief Cedric Handy says his department has been dedicated to solving this case when one of his detectives took an interest in it.
“He ended up submitting the case to the DA’s office for a bill of information and we end up getting hit with DNA and that’s how we got the warrants to obtain these five individuals,” said Handy.
The five men arrested and charged for aggravated rape were:
- Roderick Phillips, 34, of Pearland, Tx
- Tajh Matthews, 33, of Baton Rouge, La
- Patrick Robertson, 33, of Charenton, La
- Renard Collins, 33, Franklin, La
- Matthew Guienze, 32
Phillips, Robertson, Guienze, and Matthews who is an attorney, turned themselves in on a warrant for indictment. Collins was arrested by the Iberville Parish Sheriff’s Office and then transported to the St. Mary Parish Law Enforcement Center.
Chief Handy says with the help of DNA, his department was able to get a match.
“Sixteen years has passed since that has happened. DNA confirmed from the victim and all of the suspects,” said Handy.
He says this case is a little different from the others his department is trying to solve, and because the victim and suspects were juveniles at the time, information on what can be released is limited. However, because the crime has no statute of limitations, the suspects have been arrested and charged.
“Well this one is kind of unique because of the longevity and how long ago it’s been. We currently have three cases that we are looking into. They are not really cold cases yet but if we don’t get on them and try to solve them at this time, they’ll end up cold cases,” said Handy.
All suspects except Collins and have been released on a $250,000 bond.
