A DuPage County judge has found 54-year-old Alberto Gomez guilty in a sexual-assault case that sat unsolved for nearly 25 years, stemming from an attack on a woman inside her West Chicago apartment on November 25, 2001. Gomez struck the victim multiple times in the face, head and stomach, pushed her onto the bed, sexually assaulted her and then fled, before the case went cold for more than two decades until DNA technology caught up with him.
DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Berlin announced the verdict, according to the DuPage County State's Attorney's Office, saying Gomez was found guilty in the West Chicago sexual-assault cold case. The victim had contacted the West Chicago Police Department immediately after the assault, telling officers she had been alone in her apartment when she realized a man later identified as Gomez was inside with her. The West Chicago Police Department investigated the November 25, 2001 assault at the time, but the case stalled for years without an identified suspect.
A DNA Match Breaks the Case Open
The break came in 2022, when Gomez's DNA was submitted to the national DNA database and the West Chicago Police Department learned of a hit connecting him to the sexual-assault kit collected back in November 2001. DNA swabs from that assault were found consistent with Gomez's DNA, according to the same office statement. Gomez was reportedly detained that year for illegal re-entry into the United States, and was last believed to be living in Warrenville before his arrest in the cold case.
Gomez appeared in bond court on July 12, 2023, where bond was set at $5 million with 10 percent to apply. He was in custody at the DuPage County Jail. Judge Daniel Guerin found him guilty on a Wednesday in a bench trial. Gomez was convicted of three counts of aggravated criminal sexual assault, a Class X felony, four counts of criminal sexual assault, a Class 1 felony, and one count of aggravated criminal sexual abuse, a Class 2 felony.
Prosecutor Credits Investigators, Looks Ahead to Sentencing
Berlin said the guilty verdict sends a strong message that in DuPage County, you cannot outlast the law, and added that his office will never give up on a case or a victim, no matter how much time has passed. He commended the West Chicago Police Department for its efforts and commitment to justice, and thanked Assistant State's Attorney Grace Barsanti for her work on the prosecution.
The case underscores how modern forensic matching can still resolve assaults from decades past. The Illinois State Police has separately reported broader progress on evidence processing, stating that as of May 1, 2022, the statewide sexual-assault evidence backlog defined under the Sexual Assault Evidence Submission Act had been reduced by 99.9 percent.
