A Woodhaven man responsible for four separate sexual assaults was sentenced to 25 years in prison on Tuesday.
Mauricio Rosales, 33, committed four sexual assaults between 2000 and 2005. In 2000, Rosales entered the bedroom of a 12-year-old girl in Woodhaven and raped her. He then stole several items before fleeing. In 2003, Rosales approached a woman in her Kew Gardens driveway and raped and robbed her. Again in 2003, Rosales assaulted a Kew Gardens woman and attempted to rob her, but the victim was able to fight him off before he fled. Finally, in 2005, Rosales robbed a woman at knifepoint at the Roosevelt Avenue and 52nd Street subway stop then forced her to watch him pleasure himself.
The four cases remain unsolved until 2009 when Rosales was convicted of a misdemeanor petit larceny crime after he stole $3,000 from a former employer. As part of the sentencing, he was required to submit DNA, which resulted in a ‘cold hit’ positive match on the combined DNA Index System for the crimes.
“Today’s sentence is a measure of justice for the victims in this case in that they will be spared from testifying in open court about the grueling details of their cases while being assured that the defendant responsible for these horrific attacks will serve a lengthy prison sentence,” Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said.
Brown has been pushing the state legislature to further expand the use of DNA samples for all convicted criminals and has used cases like these to emphasize his point.
“This case underscores the crucial importance of DNA evidence which is irrefutable proof of guilt or innocence. It is time for the legislature to once again expand the DNA law to authorize collection of samples from all convicted defendants,” Brown said.
Under the current law, which was expanded in 2006, all convicted felons, and those convicted of 35 various misdemeanor crimes are required to submit DNA samples to the state.
