Dedham Man Pleads Not Guilty to Rape Charges After New DNA Test

A man from Dedham was arraigned Monday and held on $500,000 bail after he was indicted through the use of new DNA testing that allegedly implicates him and excludes his twin brother as a suspect in two abductions and sexual assaults that took place a decade ago.

Dwayne McNair, 33, of Dedham, was arraigned in Suffolk Superior Court Monday on eight counts of aggravated rape and two counts of armed robbery for two separate attacks on women in September 2004, according to Suffolk County District Attorney Dan Conley.

McNair was indicted in the attacks back in 2012 and was scheduled for trial earlier this year, the DA’s office said. Prosecutors, however, “temporarily withdrew their case earlier in April to pursue newly available DNA testing to differentiate between McNair and his identical twin brother, with whom he shares virtually a single genetic profile.”

“The forensic application of this testing is new, and to the best of our knowledge our case will be the first prosecution to use it,” Conley said in a statement. “The scientific foundation, on the other hand, is well-understood and widely-accepted. We look forward to the change to demonstrate as much for the court.”

Prosecutors allege that on Sept. 21, 2004, McNair and another man, Anward Thomas, abducted a woman who was walking alone in the area of Forest Hills at gunpoint, and subsequently pistol-whipped her before driving her to a remote location where they allegedly sexually assaulted and robbed her. On Sept. 29, the two allegedly abducted another woman walking alone at night in the area of Parker and Hillside streets in Roxbury, where they allegedly forced her into a vehicle, struck her several times in the face with a gun and sexually assaulted her, while also stealing her cell phone, wallet and ID, according to the DA’s office.

The victim of the second attack took a condom one of the men had used and discarded, from which Boston police were able to retrieve DNA, which later implicated McNair. At the time of the investigation, available DNA testing could not differentiate between McNair and his twin brother, and police and prosecutors subsequently secured additional evidence and testimony showing that McNair was the one who allegedly took part in the attacks, the DA’s office said.

Prior to McNair’s scheduled trial date in April, prosecutors learned of the testing that had become available, and requested a continuance to avail themselves of the new evidence; the court, however, denied the request. Prosecutors subsequently withdrew their case in order to use the testing available, paid for by the Suffolk DA’s office and the Boston Police Department.

Thomas pleaded guilty to both assaults and is currently serving a lengthy sentence in state prison, the DA’s office said.

McNair, meanwhile, pleaded not guilty Monday, and his attorney is questioning the reliability of the new tests, according to the Boston Herald.

Assistant District Attorney David Deakin, chief of the DA’s Sexual Assault and Family Protection Bureau, sought a bail of $1 million, and Clerk Magistrate Gary Wilson issued a $500,000 bail and ordered that McNair wear a GPS tracking device if he posts that amount, according to the DA’s office.

McNair is set to return to court Oct. 29.

Photo Credit: Shutterstock