A man has been sentenced to five years in prison more than 20 years after breaking into a Richmond woman’s home and sexually assaulting her.
In December 2001, the woman woke up to find someone in her bedroom who then proceeded to sexually assault her.
After the assault, the woman went to a nearby business and called police.
At that time, police conducted an investigation, but they weren’t able to identify the man. A DNA sample, however, was collected from the victim.
It wasn’t until 14 years later, in 2015, that the sample was matched to a sample in the National DNA Data Bank, linking the crime to Christopher Sharafi, also known as Mohammed Mendi Sharafi.
As part of a conviction on an unrelated matter, Sharafi had been ordered by the courts to provide his DNA sample for inclusion into the DNA Data Bank.
Richmond RCMP Insp. Michael Cohee, investigate services officer, said he commended the victim on her courage throughout the ordeal.
“She has been unwavering in seeing the offender brought to justice despite having to relive these traumatic events. We recognize how difficult it can be for victims to report offences to police, especially sexual assaults,” said Cohee.
To reduce the effects of crime and trauma, RCMP provide help from its Victim Services Unit, he added.
Cohee said “with the support of the victim from this heinous act,” they are sharing her story to encourage people who’ve been victimized by a crime to come forward.
Sharafi was found guilty of break and enter and sexual assault in October 2023 and sentenced on April 30 to five years in jail for each offence. The sentences will be served concurrently.
“We appreciate everything the victim has done in support of this criminal investigation and hope the conviction and sentencing offers some relief that justice has been served,” said Cohee.
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