A cold case that has remained unsolved since the summer of 2009, when a 36-year-old woman was sexually assaulted in her own Pompano Beach home, has finally seen a significant breakthrough, thanks to advances in DNA technology. Last Tuesday, authorities arrested 63-year-old Wisler Marcellus in connection with the armed sexual battery and home invasion more than 16 years after the crime occurred.
The Broward Sheriff's Office (BSO) reported that the woman was attacked early in the morning of June 19, 2009, while sleeping alongside her children. An intruder broke into her home, held a gun to her head, and sexually assaulted her, according to details from NBC Miami and further explained by Local 10. The assailant wore a dark mask and gloves, and after the heinous act, fled with the victim's purse. Despite the collection of DNA at the scene, the perpetrator eluded capture for years.
The case gained new momentum when BSO detectives employed enhanced DNA analysis methods. Genealogy work tied the DNA evidence to Marcellus' son, presenting the connection required for the BSO to secure a DNA warrant for Marcellus. Upon his return from Haiti at Miami International Airport, Marcellus was asked to provide DNA samples that eventually cemented the match to the 2009 crime scene. "He's off the streets right now. This person was sexually assaulted while her kids were at home and it's just traumatizing," BSO crime analyst Maritza Nunez said in a statement obtained by NBC Miami.
Marcellus now faces charges of sexual battery with a weapon and armed burglary, with his DNA being an exact match with the remains found over a decade earlier. He was apprehended eight days after his return to South Florida, and is currently held without bond as he awaits trial. "His DNA was an exact match with the 2009 crime scene, and he was arrested," officials told NBC Miami, marking a long overdue closure for a case that once seemed destined to remain unresolved in the annals of cold cases.
