![\"Lelynn](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/JZTKHGO6KBHBDBAPABO3JHCIZM.png\")
Lelynn Begay was booked into jail on one count of sexual assault and one count of kidnapping.(Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office)<\/p>\nPHOENIX (AZFamily)<\/b> \u2014 A 24-year-old cold rape case in Phoenix has been solved thanks to a DNA hit, according to new court documents released on Thursday.<\/p>\n
Police said they arrested 50-year-old Lelynn Begay on Wednesday morning in connection with the attack on a 14-year-old girl decades ago.<\/p>\n
Lelynn Begay was booked into jail on one count of sexual assault and one count of kidnapping.(Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office)<\/p>\n
According to police, the girl was hanging out with a friend on May 22, 2001, behind a drug store at 67th Avenue and Indian School Road when Begay \u201caggressively\u201d approached them. He asked the teen\u2019s friend if he knew how it felt to get stabbed.<\/p>\n
When they tried to leave, police said Begay grabbed the girl\u2019s hand, kissed the top of it, before she pulled it away. He then put his arm around her and told her to pretend like she wanted to walk with him or he would \u201cdo something,\u201d court documents said.<\/p>\n
Begay then took her behind the drug store where he urinated a few feet away from her but she couldn\u2019t run away because she had medical issues with her legs, police said. <\/p>\n
While behind the dumpster, police said he tried to touch and kiss the girl. She tried to move away but he grabbed her by the throat and said, \u201cYou gonna do what I say or you\u2019re not going to have very much fun,\u201d per court paperwork.<\/p>\n
Police said Begay held her down while he raped her. He allegedly grabbed her arm so she wouldn\u2019t take off and told her not to say anything because he\u2019s with the Mexican Mafia.<\/p>\n
Begay forced her to take her back to her apartment complex. When he grabbed her hand, she bent his finger and escaped to a meter worker at the complex, police said. Begay then ran off. <\/p>\n
Detectives later interviewed the girl and a DNA sample was taken. Police said it was outsourced to another lab to help Phoenix with its backlog of cases.<\/p>\n
In February 2025, Begay was arrested on a felony charge and a DNA sample was collected. On June 30, police said that Begay\u2019s DNA matched the DNA taken from the 2001 rape scene. He was on probation for attacking a police officer in another county.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, detectives and probation officers arranged for a meeting and Begay was arrested.<\/p>\n
Court documents said he denied everything and then asked for a lawyer. Begay was booked into jail on one count of sexual assault and one count of kidnapping. His cash-only bond was set at $150,000.<\/p>\n
Begay has a long criminal history, including convictions of trespassing, DUI, extreme DUI, aggravated assault on police and indecent exposure.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis case highlights effective use of forensic technology,\u201d Phoenix Police Sgt. Jen Zak said in an emailed statement. \u201cThe Phoenix Police Department and the Phoenix Crime Lab continue to demonstrate the value of persistence, innovation, and collaboration, to bring justice to survivors and their families.\u201d<\/p>\n
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