The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office Special Victims Section has made an arrest in a sexual battery case from 2000.
On March 7, 2000, HCSO deputies responded to a call for service that a female victim had been sexually assaulted after accepting a ride from an unknown male suspect near Browder Road and Henderson Road.
Detectives launched an investigation, and while DNA evidence was collected, all leads were exhausted, and the case went cold.
In 2022, HCSO’s Special Victims Section reopened the investigation under the Prosecuting Cold Cases Using DNA Grant, and worked with the Department of Law Enforcement and Parabon Nanolabs while FDLE funded the genetic genealogy testing.
Utilizing advanced forensic genealogy, detectives were able to develop a family tree related to the unknown suspect.
In August 2024, detectives identified Walter Leon Rutherford Jr., 59, as a possible suspect. Rutherford Jr. had been living in Missouri since 2007 but had ties to Tampa in 2000.
Detectives worked with the Stone County Sheriff’s Office in Missouri to secure a DNA sample from Rutherford under a court-issued warrant.
In September 2024, Rutherford Jr.’s DNA was compared to the sample collected from the crime scene, and in October 2024, it was confirmed to be a match.
HCSO obtained an arrest warrant charging Rutherford Jr. with two counts of sexual battery.
On October 28, 2024, Rutherford Jr. was taken into custody at Orient Road Jail.
“This case is a powerful reminder that time does not diminish our commitment to justice,” said Sheriff Chad Chronister. “Our Special Victims Section, with the help of modern technology, has brought closure to a victim who has waited for more than 20 years for answers. We hope this brings comfort and peace to the victim as she continues to heal.”
FDLE Assistant Commissioner Lee Massie said, “The FDLE Genetic Genealogy Program provides critical funding and resources that can lead to overdue closure in decades-old cases just like this one. We are grateful that the work and partnership between our agencies has finally granted the victim some peace of mind that their perpetrator will see justice.”
