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The victim flagged down a livery cab in the vicinity of Parsons and Archer Avenues.
By Forum Staff
A Manhattan man has been indicted by a grand jury for the 1996 rape of a female passenger in Jamaica, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced Thursday.
Danny Stewart, 58, was arraigned Thursday on a one-count indictment charging him with rape in the first degree. Stewart has been ordered to return to court on June 15.
According to the charges, on Sept. 15, 1996, at approximately 4 a.m., the then-23-year-old victim was on her way home after completing back-to-back shifts at two restaurants. She flagged down a livery cab in the vicinity of Parsons and Archer Avenues. As the vehicle approached her residence, she attempted to exit the car, but the defendant allegedly refused to let her out. Instead, he drove to a dark parking lot nearby, allegedly displayed what appeared to be a firearm, choked the woman and then raped her. After the assault the defendant allowed her to exit the vehicle, at which time she walked home and then went to the hospital.
File Photo
“The victim in this case was just attempting to go home after work, but unfortunately met up with this alleged predator, who at long last faces prosecution for this crime,” DA Katz said.
DA Katz said that at the hospital a sexual assault evidence kit was collected but it was not immediately tested for DNA for the simple fact that no DNA databank existed at the time. In 2000, the New York
State criminal DNA databank system was launched, and NYC was then able to test every rape kit in its possession, including the victim’s—and a male DNA profile was produced. In the fall of 2020, Stewart was swabbed for his DNA in New York State. The NYS DNA databank generated a match to the victim’s rape kit, which then alerted the NYPD and the Queens DA’s office. The matter was presented to a borough grand jury, which ultimately indicted Stewart.
“The break in this 25-year-old cold case, the oldest sexual assault case ever prosecuted in Queens County, came from a DNA match that had been previously unattainable,” Katz said. “The victim in this case was just attempting to go home after work, but unfortunately met up with this alleged predator, who at long last faces prosecution for this crime. Justice is not always immediate, but a victim’s suffering deserves closure.”
If convicted, Stewart faces 12 1/2 to 25 years in prison.
