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“We are pleased to have made an arrest in this traumatic attack and hope it brings some closure for the survivor after all these years.”
Edmonton Police Headquarters and Headquarters. Photo by photo per file
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Using research genetic genealogy, Edmonton police laid charges in connection with the sexual assault of a 15-year-old girl in 1981 — the first time the tool helped lead to charges.
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In the early morning hours of July 9, 1981, the girl was walking home across a school field on the city’s northeast side, near 121 Avenue and 46 Street, when she was grabbed by a man, dragged and sexually assaulted before the assailant fled on foot, said Det. . Kevin Harrison on Tuesday.
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The man was a stranger to the girl and the case remained cold for more than four decades.
In February 2018, the file was transferred to the Edmonton Police Service’s Historic Crimes Unit. Evidence from the old file was turned over to an RCMP lab and a DNA profile was created on the unknown man. However, at that time no matching profile was found in the National DNA Data Bank.
In 2021, investigators then undertook investigative genetic genealogy, comparing a DNA sample from the crime scene to profiles in publicly available commercial databases.
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“Through this comparison, and by working with an investigative genetic genealogist, investigators were able to combine information about the suspect’s relatives with other existing evidence to identify a now 65-year-old man,” Harrison said.
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Currently, only two publicly available genetic databases, FamilyTreeDNA and GEDMatch, allow law enforcement to conduct searches, all limited to serious crimes. Both websites require users to either agree to the terms of service or “opt-in” to the terms that allow their DNA profile to be included in law enforcement searches.
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Harrison said when a sample is sent to private labs in the U.S., a DNA profile is developed and then uploaded to databases.
“This then generates a list of genetic matches for researchers and genetic genealogists to review, which allows us to begin building a family tree,” Harrison said.
Investigators will work from the suspect’s DNA profile up the family tree to the most recent common ancestor and then back to a possible suspect.
“Other investigative steps are then taken to ensure the suspect is of the right age, lives in the right area and matches the description. But at the end of the day, the key is that it’s an investigative technique or tool,” Harrison said.
“We are then required to go out and look for legitimate DNA from the suspect that has been profiled according to the RCMP lab and compare it to the suspect’s profile to confirm a match.”
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In May, the RCMP lab confirmed that legally obtained DNA from the suspect matched the DNA profile developed from evidence in the 1981 case, Harrison said.
As a result, on Oct. 13, officers arrested and charged Guy Grefhard, 65, of Kelvington, Sask. with rape and gross indecency as defined in the Criminal Code of Canada 1981.
“(The complainant was) very happy that she was not forgotten and that we were able to make an arrest in this case,” Harrison said.
He noted that it is important that the survivors of historical crimes and their family members are not forgotten.
“Our office and EPS are constantly researching new techniques and ways to examine evidence and try to come to some conclusion and identify suspects and make arrests,” Harrison said.
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“When it comes to people who have committed these crimes, I truly believe that some of these people believe they got away with it and they need to know that we haven’t forgotten them either.”
Since 2018, members of the Historical Crimes Unit have reviewed or completed investigations into 126 files. Charges have been filed in nine of the investigations and charges are pending in one additional investigation.
In the past four years, police have used research genetic genealogy in five cases, including three sexual assaults, one armed robbery and one human remains investigation. To date, the 1981 investigation is the only file using this technology to result in charges.
ajunker@postmedia.com
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