BOSTON, Jan. 12, 2018—A Suffolk Superior Court jury today returned guilty verdicts on all charges against the man who kidnapped and raped two women within days of one another in 2004 in a case complicated by the fact that the defendant was an identical twin, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said.

Jurors deliberated for approximately one day before convicting DWAYNE McNAIR (D.O.B. 1/30/81) this afternoon of all charges in connection with the two 2004 attacks.  He faces sentencing next month on eight counts of aggravated rape and two counts of armed robbery.

During the course of three days of testimony, Assistant District Attorney David Deakin, chief of the DA’s Family Protection and Sexual Assault Bureau, proved that McNair and a second man, ANWAR THOMAS (D.O.B. 5/9/82) abducted and sexually assaulted two women within nine days of one another during September 2004. Thomas, who knew McNair well and testified at trial that he could distinguish the defendant from his twin brother, pleaded guilty in 2012.

“We left no stone unturned in the 13-year history of this case,” Conley said. “When we heard of cutting-edge DNA testing that could distinguish between identical twins, we utilized it.  Although a judge ruled the results were not admissible, they only strengthened our commitment to bring the case to trial.  We were deeply gratified that the jury recognized the defendant’s guilt even without that powerful evidence, and I hope they recognize that their verdicts took a dangerous sexual predator off of Boston’s streets.”

On Sept. 21, 2004, McNair and Thomas abducted a woman at gunpoint as she walked alone in the area of Forest Hills.  They beat her with a handgun and drove her to a remote location where she was sexually assaulted, robbed, and then driven to the area of Franklin Park.  There, she was released able to flag down a passing vehicle.

The second victim was abducted on the night of Sept. 29, 2004, as she walked alone in the area of Parker and Hillside streets in Roxbury.  McNair and Thomas forced the woman into a vehicle and struck her in the head with a gun repeatedly.  She was taken to a wooded area where she was sexually assaulted and robbed.  The victim was able to collect a condom used by one of the men as she gathered her clothing after the assault and provided it to Boston Police.

DNA testing of the condom and other evidence was completed by criminalists at the Boston Police Crime Laboratory and eventually matched the genetic profile of Dwayne McNair – but, because he is an identical twin, it also matched his that of his brother.  The testing available at the time could not differentiate between the two, but by 2012 police and prosecutors were able to secure additional evidence against Dwayne McNair, leading to his indictment.

Jurors in McNair’s trial did not hear testimony on subsequent cutting-edge DNA testing that, scientists said, differentiated between McNair and his twin brother. The process, known as second-generation genome mapping, was first announced in late 2013 and conducted for the McNair case the next year.  Experts opined that the results showed Dwayne McNair was two billion times more likely to be the source of the crime scene DNA than his identical twin.

McNair moved to exclude those results. Following eight days of testimony from experts in the field of molecular biology and genetics, a Suffolk Superior Court judge granted that motion even after finding that the testing and analysis put forth by prosecutors “were based on generally accepted, valid scientific or statistical principles.”

Sexual assault can happen to anyone. While the victims of any crime are asked to call 911 in an emergency, survivors of sexual violence can also call their local rape crisis center for free and confidential services and to discuss their options. Support is available for all survivors of sexual violence, regardless of whether they wish to take part in a criminal prosecution. Services by city and town can be found at www.janedoe.org/find_help/search.

In Suffolk County, the Boston Area Rape Crisis Center offers a free and confidential 24-hour hotline at 800-841-8371. The Boston Area Rape Crisis Center provides medical accompaniment and many other free services to victims of rape and sexual assault. Suffolk victim-witness advocates can assist in referrals to BARCC and a wide array of non-profit service providers who can offer additional support and services.

Anne Kelley-McCarthy is the DA’s assigned victim-witness advocate.  McNair is represented by Robert Tobin.  Sentencing before Judge Linda Giles is scheduled to take place Feb. 5.

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All defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.