DNA testing leads to arrest in 2009 armed sexual assault in Pompano Beach – WSVN 7News | Miami News, Weather, Sports

POMPANO BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) – More than 15 years after a home invasion and sexual assault, Broward Sheriff’s Office detectives say they have identified and arrested the man responsible.

Officials say 63-year-old Wisler Marcellus was taken into custody last week after DNA evidence linked him to a 2009 sexual battery case in Pompano Beach.

According to BSO, the attack happened around 3:30 a.m. on June 19, when a 36-year-old mother was asleep in her bedroom with her two children. Investigators said a man broke into the home through a window, held the woman at gunpoint and sexually assaulted her while her children slept nearby.

The suspect then fled with her purse, leaving behind DNA evidence.

Despite multiple efforts at the time, the case went cold for 16 years.

Earlier this year, detectives used new advanced DNA technology to reexamine evidence. A familial search conducted identified a possible relative of the suspect, leading investigators to Marcellus.

Detectives were able to obtain a DNA sample from Marcellus when he returned from Haiti to Miami on Oct. 20. That sample matched the DNA collected from the 2009 crime scene.

Eight days later, Marcellus was arrested and booked into the Broward County jail. He faces charges of sexual battery with a weapon and armed burglary.

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