40 years after woman murdered in Virginia, DNA leads to arrest in Connecticut
CBS News • • nation
Key Points:
- Charles Berry, a 66-year-old man from Newington, Connecticut, was arrested for the 1986 rape and murder of 22-year-old Roberta Walls in Virginia Beach, following advances in forensic genealogy.
- Walls was found sexually assaulted and stabbed multiple times in a field, and despite initial investigations, the case went cold until DNA evidence was reexamined with new technology and funding in 2023.
- A DNA profile developed in 2001 and later analyzed in 2017 did not yield suspects until a direct DNA comparison identified Berry, who was reportedly in the U.S. Navy at the time of the crime.
- Berry was charged as a fugitive from justice, held on a $10 million bond, and is awaiting extradition to Virginia, where further charges are expected.
- Virginia Beach police expressed confidence in the arrest and hope the breakthrough encourages other families of cold case victims seeking closure.