1984 Columbia rape suspect has first Boone County court hearing; will have bond hearing Wednesday
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
A North Carolina man accused of raping and assaulting a woman in Columbia in 1984 had his first court appearance Monday after being brought back to Missouri on Friday.
James F. Wilson's appeared via video from the Boone County Jail for his initial court appearance without a lawyer but told Judge Tracey Gonzalez he is applying for one.
Wilson is currently in the Boone County Jail without bond.
Gonzalez ordered a bond investigation and Wilson will have a bond hearing 9 a.m. Wednesday. A preliminary hearing is set for 1:30 p.m. Jan. 12.
The Iredell County Sheriff's Office said James Wilson was picked up by Missouri law enforcement Friday morning. Wilson had been in the Iredell County Jail in North Carolina since his arrest on Oct . 27.
Boone County Prosecuting Attorney Roger Johnson charged Wilson Oct. 25 with rape and first-degree assault in connection with a 1984 rape and assault of a woman in northeast Columbia.
The case sat cold for years until it was reopened in 2020 after further investigation and a sexual assault kit was sent in for DNA testing. Columbia police were able to notify a possible family match to the suspect and were able to narrow down Wilson as a potential suspect. They determined Wilson lived in Columbia at the time of the incident.
The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation then became involved in the case and learned Wilson lived in North Carolina. The bureau did some digging and grabbed some of Wilson's trash and found a disposable razor with hair in the blades.
