| For Immediate Release Case # 11CF2769 October 13, 2011 |
Susan Kang Schroeder Chief of Staff Office: 714-347-8408 Cell: 714-292-2718Farrah Emami Spokesperson Office: 714-347-8405 Cell: 714-323-4486 |
ODCA CHARGES MAN WITH 2007 COLD CASE SEXUAL ASSAULT OF FEMALE NEIGHBOR AFTER DNA HIT
* Defendant’s DNA collected as part of OCDA Public Safety Crime Prevention and Deterrence DNA program
SANTA ANA – The Orange County District Attorney’s (OCDA) Office filed charges today against a man for a 2007 cold case sexual assault of his female neighbor after a DNA hit. Silvano Analco Alvarez, 31, Tustin, is charged with one felony count of assault with intent to commit rape during the commission of a burglary with sentencing enhancement allegations for the personal use of a deadly weapon during a sexual assault, and having a non-accomplice present during a residential burglary. If convicted on all counts, he faces a maximum sentence of life in state prison with the possibility of parole. The defendant is being held on $1 million bail and is scheduled to for a continued arraignment Oct. 28, 2011, in Department CJ-1, Central Jail, Santa Ana. The time is to be determined.
At approximately 5:00 a.m. on June 3, 2007, Alvarez is accused of entering then-28-year-old Jane Doe’s Santa Ana apartment. She was Alvarez’s neighbor but did not know him. The defendant is accused of entering the victim’s bedroom, standing over her, grabbing her neck and waking her up. He is accused of grabbing her shoulders and holding a knife to her neck. Alvarez is accused of instructing the victim in Spanish to take off her clothes and climbing on top of her. He is accused of kissing Jane Doe on the neck and touching her breasts. The victim managed to resist Alvarez and tells him that her family would arrive home shortly. The defendant is accused of fleeing the scene.
Jane Doe called Santa Ana Police Department (SAPD), who investigated the case. DNA collected at the scene was sent to the Orange County Crime Laboratory. There were no matches found in the local DNA database and national Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) database, and the case went cold.
On May 9, 2011, as a result of a February 2011 misdemeanor hit and run while driving without a license charge, Alvarez’s DNA was collected. As part of the plea agreement and the OCDA Public Safety Crime Prevention and Deterrence DNA program, the defendant was required to provide a DNA sample. On Aug. 8, 2011, OCDA provided SAPD with a local DNA database hit linking Alvarez to the June 2007 sexual assault of Jane Doe. After a subsequent investigation, SAPD arrested the defendant yesterday, Oct. 12, 2011.
Deputy District Attorney Robert Mestman of the DNA Unit is prosecuting this case.