Rape trial told of DNA match

A trial jury has been told that the DNA profile of a man accused of raping an 18-year-old student in Cork matched that found …

A trial jury has been told that the DNA profile of a man accused of raping an 18-year-old student in Cork matched that found on her underwear and on swabs taken from her.

Dr Geraldine O'Donnell, a forensic scientist, told Mr Conor Devally SC at the Central Criminal Court yesterday that the chances of another person having the same DNA profile were less than one in one thousand million.

She was giving evidence on day four of the trial of a 41-year-old man, who has pleaded not guilty to raping the woman on April 26th, 2002, at a house in a Cork suburb.

The woman claims she woke up to find him having sexual intercourse with her after she had gone to bed alone.

READ MORE

Earlier, another forensic scientist, Dr Bríd McBride, agreed with Mr Hugh Hartnett SC (with Mr Pieter Le Vert), defending, that there was no sign of damage to the alleged victim's clothes other than that caused by normal wear and tear.

The trial continues before Mr Justice Murphy and a jury of eight men and four women.