Suspect in Westover sexual assault from 24 years ago arrested in Connecticut

HARTFORD, Conn. (WBOY) — DNA evidence and the combined effort of U.S. Marshals and law enforcement from multiple states led to a man accused of committing a sexual assault in Westover, West Virginia in 2000 to be arrested last month.

In May 2000, a victim reported a sexual assault to the Westover Police Department, but a suspect was never identified, according to a press release from the U.S. Marshals Service . However, in January 2021, authorities from California matched DNA evidence from a sexual assault case in Montana with evidence from the Westover case.

Based on the DNA evidence, Tyron Jermaine Walker, 50, of Waterbury, Conn., was named the suspect in the case, and in June 2023, a warrant for his arrest was issued by a magistrate court in Monongalia County, according to the release.

Walker was apprehended by U.S. Marshals on July 23, 2024, and as of that date, was pending extradition to West Virginia on a charge of second-degree sexual assault. Walker is not listed in the West Virginia Division of Corrections jail database as of Aug. 14.

According to Westover Police Chief Joe Adams, who referenced the arrest during the Aug. 5 Westover City Council meeting , the evidence match happened through of the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS).

During his administrative update on Tuesday, Aug. 13 , Gov. Jim Justice (R) credited the arrest to the Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI), a grant program that aims to reform how sexual assault cases are handled, and announced another almost $1.2 million in SAKI grants for 21 projects in West Virginia .

“This grant paid for testing and services to link, you know, this guy, you know, that has been living in Montana for the last few years, and everything. And, with all that being said, a crime that was horrible, but has been solved by the great work of one of these grants,” Justice said during the briefing.

The grants will fund a number of organizations that provide domestic violence and sexual assault services and response, including the Victim Outreach Remote Technology Project, which was just expanded into Harrison County . A full list of organizations is available on the governor’s website here .

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