Charlotte serial rapist sentenced to life after victims ‘courageously’ testify
Charlotte serial rapist sentenced to life as victims bravely come forward.
Accident – Death – Obituary News :
Charlotte man sentenced to life in prison for serial rape
A Charlotte man identified by prosecutors as a serial rapist has been sentenced to life in prison after three victims came forward to recount their decades-old attacks.
L.J. Bertha, now 64, was found guilty in Mecklenburg County Superior Court on Monday of first-degree rape, second-degree rape, first-degree kidnapping, second-degree kidnapping, attempted second-degree sex offense, and common law robbery.
The jury acquitted Bertha of one count each of first-degree rape and attempted first-degree sex offense, according to prosecutors.
“Three brave survivors courageously took the stand, and their testimonies played a crucial role in ensuring justice and protecting the community,” said a statement released by the Mecklenburg County District Attorney’s office.
One victim testified that Bertha had kicked in her driver’s side window while she was parked at a shopping center off Freedom Drive in 1993. The assailant then forced her to move over, drove to a dead-end road, and raped her, prosecutors revealed.
Judge Peter Knight imposed the sentencing based on laws in effect at the time of the offenses. Bertha received a life sentence with the possibility of parole after 20 years for the first-degree rape conviction, along with an additional 33 years for the remaining convictions.
DNA evidence linked to suspect, law enforcement confirms
Following the 1993 rape incident, Bertha was apprehended by the police after driving the victim back to the shopping center parking lot, where she sought help, prosecutors disclosed.
“Serological testing conducted at the time confirmed the presence of semen, and DNA testing carried out in 2023 conclusively identified Bertha as the suspect,” stated the prosecutors in a news release.
In a separate incident on July 30, 1994, Bertha accosted another victim on Beatties Ford Road, where he forced her to a dead-end road and raped her while brandishing a box cutter, according to the District Attorney’s office.
The victim managed to escape and run to a nearby convenience store, where the police were subsequently summoned. DNA testing in 2023 also linked Bertha to this assault.
Rape near current BofA Stadium location
The third victim who testified against Bertha was raped in November 1996, as per court records.
Bertha was convicted of this crime in 1997 and served a 20-year prison sentence, as confirmed by law enforcement.
Bertha was also charged in the 1995 rape of a 16-year-old near the present-day Bank of America Stadium in uptown Charlotte. New DNA evidence in 2019 linked Bertha to this assault.
The teenager was raped and robbed while heading towards a pay phone on Dunbar Street to contact her mother, according to a police news release from 2019.
During the time of the incident, the NFL Carolina Panthers’ home ground was nearing completion, and a stranger approached the victim offering to guide her to the pay phone, police disclosed.
As of Tuesday, the current status of this case remains undisclosed.
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Charlotte serial rapist sentenced to life after victims courageously take the stand, Charlotte serial rapist sentenced to life after victims courageously testify.
