RICHMOND — A serology case file review by the Virginia Department of Forensic Science led Virginia State Police investigators to arrest a convicted sex offender Monday for the rape and murder of an 88-year-old Emporia woman.
At about noon, state police arrested Thomas Pope Jr., 53, of Emporia, on charges of rape and first-degree murder. He is being held without bond at the Southside Regional Jail.
On the evening of Jan. 2, 1975, Eva King Jones was attacked in her home in the 300 block of Main Street in Emporia, according to the Virginia State Police.
The state police, Emporia Police Department, Greensville Sheriff's Office and Emporia Commonwealth's Attorney investigated the incident. An arrest was made in June 1975 with the indictment of Curtis Jasper Moore, of Emporia, on charges of rape and murder.
Following a mental health commitment to Central State Hospital, Moore was tried and convicted of the Emporia charges in 1978. Upon appeal, the charges against Moore were nolle prossed in 1983. Moore died of natural causes approximately four years ago.
In 2005, former Gov. Mark Warner ordered a review of all of the Department of Forensic Science serology case files worked between 1973 and 1988. The purpose of the review was to locate files that contained evidence and, in cases where the listed suspect was convicted, to have DNA testing conducted on that evidence.
Analysis of the DNA evidence preserved in this particular case file has been attributed to Pope. Upon notification of this new evidence, the state police immediately reopened the case, which resulted in Pope's arrest.
As mandated by the laws governing the Virginia Sex Offender and Crimes Against Minors Registry, Pope was previously required to provide his DNA for the state's DNA database. The investigation remains ongoing.
— Press release
Email
Facebook
Google
Twitter
Favorites
More
Advertisement