Authorities say a Minneapolis cab driver’s past caught up with him this week, after DNA testing allegedly tied him to two separate sexual assaults that happened ten years apart. Prosecutors charged 46-year-old Angel Rodolfo Fernandez Morocho on Monday, accusing him of assaulting one woman in 2012 while driving a taxi and another in 2022 while working for a rideshare service. Local prosecutors say the DNA match surfaced during a renewed push to review sexual assault kit hits that had been sitting in the system.
In a press release from the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office, prosecutors say they have filed criminal complaints charging Fernandez Morocho with attempted third and fourth degree criminal sexual conduct in the 2012 case, and third degree criminal sexual conduct in the 2022 case. According to that release, Fernandez Morocho made incriminating admissions when questioned by investigators, and vehicles registered to him matched the descriptions both victims gave of the cars involved. Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty called the filing of charges “a testament to this important work” and said her office is prepared to move the prosecutions forward.
Investigation and DNA link
Criminal complaints reviewed by CBS Minnesota state that both women told police they had fallen asleep in the back seat and later woke up to find the driver assaulting them. In the 2012 incident, the victim reportedly grabbed paperwork from the cab that listed the name “Angel Fernandez” and described the vehicle as a Chevrolet Impala. Investigators say the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension eventually matched DNA collected in the more recent sexual assault kit to the earlier profile, which generated the lead that brought the older case back into focus.
SAKI review helped surface the hit
Prosecutors say the cases grew out of Minnesota’s Sexual Assault Kit Initiative, a statewide effort that funded testing of previously unsubmitted sexual assault kits and created formal procedures for reviewing DNA hits in CODIS and coordinating follow up among counties. As outlined by the Sexual Assault Kit Initiative, the program supports testing through the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and stresses collaboration among county attorneys, law enforcement agencies and victim advocacy groups so older DNA matches are not ignored.
Charges, court date and legal context
According to the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office, the cases against Fernandez Morocho are filed under case numbers 27-CR-26-18287, tied to the 2012 report, and 27-CR-26-18316, tied to the 2022 allegation. His next court hearing is scheduled for August 12 at 9 a.m. Under Minnesota law, third degree criminal sexual conduct carries a maximum possible sentence of 15 years in prison and a fine of up to $30,000, as summarized by House Research. Attempted offenses may be punished by up to one half of the maximum sentence under Minn. Stat. § 609.17. Prosecutors note that felony criminal sexual conduct convictions also require predatory offender registration and other conditions that can follow a defendant long after release.
