DNA Match Leads To Arrest In Tuscaloosa Sexual Assault Cold Case

TUSCALOOSA, AL — Tuscaloosa investigators say a DNA match has led to an arrest in a 15-year-old sexual assault case and police are asking for the public’s help identifying a second suspect.

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Captain Jack Kennedy, commander of the Tuscaloosa Violent Crimes Unit, told local media on Friday that an adult woman reported in March 2010 that she had been sexually assaulted by two men she met at the former Southern Gentleman’s Club, then located in the 7000 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.

Kennedy said she did not know either of the men and efforts at the time to identify them were unsuccessful.

He then said forensic testing confirmed the involvement of two different assailants, before mentioning that the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences maintains a DNA database of certain arrestees and convicted offenders.

Earlier this year, local investigators were notified of a match to one of the samples.

Kennedy said the matched DNA was linked to Stacey Deangelo Martin, who was arrested on unrelated charges in July 2025, which prompted VCU investigators to reopen the case.

A grand jury then indicted Martin this month on a charge of first-degree rape.

He was booked into the Tuscaloosa County Jail this week and is being held without bond.

Kennedy said Martin was 25 years old at the time of the assault.

Kennedy also said the second suspect has not been identified, before mentioning that investigators believe the two men knew each other in 2010.

The unidentified assailant was described at the time as a Black man between 35 and 50 years old.

Those with information that could help identify the second suspect are asked to contact the Violent Crimes Unit at (205) 464-8690.

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