DNA Leads To Conviction For Raping 3 Women In Hempstead: Nassau DA

MINEOLA, NY — A Queens man was convicted on Friday of raping three women in Hempstead between 2015 and 2020, prosecutors said.

Adell Hardwick, 36, was convicted on three counts of first-degree rape, predatory sexual assault and three counts of first-degree criminal sexual act. He was acquitted of one count of predatory sexual assault.

A DNA swab taken from Hardwick after his arrest for a rape in 2020 linked him to the other two violent crimes, Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said.

"This defendant is a serial rapist with a long history of violent crimes," said DA Donnelly. "He used his knowledge of Hempstead to identify secluded and abandoned areas and violently, forcibly raped women he had just met."

Hardwick is scheduled to be sentenced on September 26. He faces up to 25 years to life in prison.

A buccal swab obtained after Hardwick's arrest was compared to the DNA samples retrieved after each of the incidents and positively identified the defendant as the attacker, Donnelly said.

"The bravery of these women in coming forward to police after the defendant’s monstrous attacks led to the collection of DNA samples that together were the linchpin to his prosecution and to finally seeing justice for what they endured," Donnelly said.