Man Arrested In Sexual Assault Of Cherokee Store Worker 39 Years Ago

CANTON, GA — A 76-year-old man is facing rape and kidnapping charges 39 years after a 19-year-old woman was attacked while leaving work in Canton, the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office said Tuesday.

Authorities said Thomas Lamar Keith, of Atlanta, was arrested Monday in connection with the January 1986 sexual assault of a convenience store worker. The store was located at Hickory Flat Highway near Lower Scott Mill Road.

The worker closed the store and was getting into her car when authorities said she was attacked. Authorities added she was taken to another unknown location and was assaulted.

A sexual assault kit was collected, but developing DNA technology made the kit difficult to be tested, authorities said. At the time, leads in the case lacked, and the case went cold.

Most recently, authorities said they used the national Combined DNA Index System to test the kit, which resulted in a DNA match.

Keith was arrested Monday and was charged on suspicion of rape and kidnapping, authorities said, adding he is a current registered sex offender in Fulton County.

Authorities said Keith's DNA matched to another 1986 sexual assault case, which remains under investigation.

Keith is being held without bond at the Cherokee County Adult Detention Center, authorities said.

“This arrest is a huge step towards getting much deserved justice for our victims no matter how much time has passed," Cherokee County Sheriff Frank Reynolds said in a news release. "We hope it brings some measure of peace to the survivor."