SUMMIT COUNTY, Ohio (WOIO) – The Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) identified the suspect in a 26-year-old Summit County cold case, and he was charged and arrested Thursday.
Using a stored DNA sample, BCI identified 48-year-old Anthony D. Collins of Seville, Ohio, as the suspect in the cold case that occurred in February 2000, according to the Summit County Sheriff’s Office.
Anthony D. Collins(WOIO)
The Summit County Prosecutor’s Office said the incident occurred on Feb. 15, 2000, when a 26-year-old woman was raped by an unknown man in Green, Ohio.
A sexual assault collection kit was completed and the Summit County Prosecutor’s Office started an investigation.
Investigators concluded the assault occurred inside the victim’s car at an unknown location in or near Green.
Detectives were not able to identify the suspect at the time.
The kit was submitted to BCI, where the DNA sample was detected but could not be linked to any suspect, the Summit County Sheriff’s Office said.
In January 2026, BCI identified Collins as the suspect after the DNA sample was uploaded to the FBI’s Combined DNA Index System.
The Summit County Prosecutor’s Office said the investigation was reopened by the Summit County Sheriff’s Office Detective Bureau.
Both the initial and new investigations were reviewed by the Summit County Prosecutor’s Office, and criminal charges were filed.
Collins was arrested Thursday and charged with rape, a first-degree felony.
He is being held in the Summit County Jail.
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