DNA from stranger sex attack on Leeds student 50 years ago matches Devon man, court told
A man accused of raping a Leeds student almost 50 years ago has been matched to the scene by his DNA, a jury has been told.
David Sharp is on trial at Leeds Crown Court this week, accused of targeting the teenage woman on her first night in student halls in October 1977.
The jury heard that swab samples were taken in the hours after the assault, but the subsequent police investigation stalled.
Due to the advancement of forensics, DNA was extracted from the decades-old swabs in 2023 during a “cold-case” review by West Yorkshire Police.
No exact match was found on the database, but it was partially matched to one male.
However, he was not old enough in 1977 to have committed the crime, so officers pursued DNA samples from his relatives, one of which was Sharp, the court heard.
The 66-year-old’s sample resulted in an exact match, prosecutor Jayne Beckett said.
Electoral records also showed that Sharp, of Copland Meadows, Totnes, Devon, was living in Leeds in 1977.
He was arrested in late 2023. Sharp denies charges of sexual assault and rape, claiming he may have had consensual sexual relations with the woman.
The jury was told that the victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was due to begin university in October of 1977.
She had been dropped off by her parents at the student halls on the night of October 1, having been driven up from her home in the south of England.
Having gone to bed at 11pm, she was woken abruptly by the sound of her bedroom window being put through at around 3am.
The intruder then climbed through, before raping her, the court heard.
He was disturbed by a noise and fled through the front door as the woman was left in tears.
She raised the alarm with her halls neighbour, and they called the police from a nearby payphone.
The court heard that despite her ordeal, the victim went on to complete her studies.
The trial continues.