Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department Sexual Assault Cold Case Detectives have arrested 55-year-old Dulaine Lotharp in connection with two sexual assaults committed in 1993 and 1994, bringing resolution to a 32-year-old cold case. The first assault occurred on July 22, 1993, when a woman reported being attacked by an unknown suspect in the Providence Division. Over a year later, on August 25, 1994, another woman was similarly assaulted while walking along a wooded path in the same division. Sexual assault kits were collected in both cases. Although detectives investigated diligently at the time, the limitations of early DNA technology prevented a suspect from being identified. Years later, detectives revisited the case and submitted the preserved DNA samples for retesting using funding from the Bureau of Justice Assistance’s DNA Capacity Enhancement for Backlog Reduction (CEBR) Program and the New York County District Attorney’s Office (DANY). This testing ultimately identified Lotharp as the suspect in both assaults. He was taken into custody on August 30, 2025, and charged with three counts of First-Degree Rape, two counts of First-Degree Kidnapping, Common Law Robbery, and Communicating Threats.
