Technology, dedication lead to arrest in early 2000s sexual battery cold case

ORLANDO, Fla. - Orlando police officers, agents with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE), and deputies with the Orange County Sheriff's Office are credited with working together to crack two sexual battery cold cases from the early 2000s, thanks to technology and dedication.  

"The stuff we’re doing today was science fiction 20 years ago," OPD Detective Graham Cage said.  "Back in 2002-2003 series of sexual batteries that happened in Orlando.  Very quickly they were able to link DNA at the time just there was no name attached to this DNA."

The original lead detective working the case retired from OPD and took a job at FDLE, and he took a few cases with him. 

"He initiated a genealogy investigation and from that investigation, he actually was able to come with an investigative lead," said Detective Cage. 

Genealogy led detectives to a male biological child in the Harris family, but the problem was that in that particular family there were four sons. While researching the four brothers, detectives said they discovered one of them, Dwight Arthur Harris, was a suspect in a 2011 rape case.  The victim, in that case, didn’t get a rape test done to collect DNA and opted not to prosecute so detectives never collected DNA from Dwight Harris.  However, that victim was able to give investigators a solid description of her attacker along with his license plate number, according to the arrest warrant.  

Detectives said details of all three of those attacks were similar: women alone grabbed and dragged into wooded areas, then forced to perform sex acts while threatened with a knife or box cutter. Investigators took all of that information to a judge, got a warrant, and collected DNA from Harris.  

"They found it was an exact match," Detective Cage said.  

Investigators arrested Harris on July 2 on charges related to the 2002 and 2003 cases and quickly shared the news with the victims. 

"They both thought that this day would never come, thought this were cases would forever be unsolved," Detective Cage said. 

Harris lives in an East Orlando neighborhood with his wife and children.  

"He was living a normal life," Orlando Police Lieutenant Frank Chisari said, "family, had a regular job, just as if this had never happened," 

Harris’ neighbors said he’s always been a nice guy. 

"I was just mind blown, didn’t expect to hear this about him," neighbor Steven Cruz said.

Harris is being held at the Orange County Jail without bond.  While he’s charged in two cases, detectives said they’ve linked him to a total of five sexual battery and attempted sexual battery cases.  More charges could be coming.  Court records show that Harris is due back in court on Thursday. 

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