Over a decade has passed, but justice may still be served. Dustin Thomas of Cameron, North Carolina, is facing trial for a 2012 cold-case sexual assault at a Kalamazoo fraternity house. The 35-year-old has been charged with first-degree criminal sexual conduct, as announced by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel. According to a press release from the Michigan Attorney General's Office, the incident occurred during a party, during the summer of 2012, where Thomas, who was then 22, allegedly assaulted a 21-year-old female student from Western Michigan University.
The sexual assault evidence kit, collected in the aftermath in 2012, wasn't tested until 2016. The kit was later referred to the Kalamazoo Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI), which sparked a lengthy re-investigation that started in 2022. Charges were finally brought against Thomas in December of 2024 by the Kalamazoo SAKI unit - an entity dedicated to revisiting cold cases with modern vigor and pursuing justice for survivors long after their trauma was first inflicted.
The resurgence of this case stands as a testament to the determination of the Kalamazoo SAKI Team, whose work has been lauded by Kalamazoo County Prosecuting Attorney Jeffrey S. Getting. “Because of their hard work, we are able to bring forward a case, despite the passage of more than a decade, on behalf of a survivor that otherwise would not have a chance for justice,” he commented. Kalamazoo's SAKI team is a collaborative project that involves the efforts of the Michigan Attorney General’s Office, the Kalamazoo County Prosecutor’s Office, and the YWCA of Kalamazoo, and they are currently investigating over 200 cold-case sexual assaults in Kalamazoo County between 1976 and 2015.
Thomas is expected to appear in the 9th Circuit Court on March 10th before Judge Rebecca D’Angelo. For those who may hold more pieces to the unsolved puzzle presented by Dustin Samuel Thomas, the attorney general's office encourages them to contact Kalamazoo County investigator Richard Johnson directly by email or at 269-569-0515.
