After more than a decade since the incident, a Lunenberg man has been sentenced to 15 years in state prison for a 2013 sexual assault in Acton. Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan along with Acton Chief of Police James Cogan and Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority (MBTA) Chief Kenneth Green announced Christopher Aldrich, 30, pled guilty to the crime.
"After over a decade, Christopher Aldrich has finally been held accountable for this assault after having evaded justice for so long," said District Attorney Ryan. Adding to the sense of resolution, she highlighted how "this case is an example of how good investigative work coupled with emerging technology can not only identify suspects but bring these cases to a resolution." Having asserted Aldrich's guilty plea, the exact nature of this crime was elucidated when a woman, then 22, was threatened with a knife and sexually assaulted while waiting at the South Acton Commuter Rail Station.
The authorities conducted a thorough search for the assailant immediately after the assault, but were initially unsuccessful. Forensic evidence processed by the State Police Crime Laboratory failed to find a match in offender databases. Undeterred by the challenges, the case saw renewed efforts after several years thanks to advancements in forensic genetic genealogy analysis provided by Parabon NanoLabs, as reported by the official press release.
It wasn't until a car accident in November 2022 involving Aldrich led to a breakthrough in the case. According to Chief Cogan, "I hope that knowing the perpetrator will be held accountable for this heinous crime provides some measure of relief to the survivor." Found inside Aldrich's car was an open bottle of Fireball whiskey from which a DNA sample was a match to the profile from the 2013 crime scene. The DNA's rarity in the broader population underscored the certainty of this investigative lead, leading to Aldrich's arrest and his eventual guilty plea.
The successful conclusion of this cold case not only brings some measure of justice for the survivor but also offers a testament to the tenacity and collaborative efforts of the law enforcement agencies involved. The Middlesex District Attorney’s Office Cold Case Unit, the Acton Police Department, MBTA Transit Police, and several other state and local authorities worked together to see this case to its resolution. Assistant District Attorney David Solet led the prosecution, with Susie Marshall advocating for the victim.
