A state prison inmate serving time for sexual assault has been linked to a 14-year-old case in Chippewa County. New charges have been filed against 34-year-old Thomas Bealhen after his DNA matched evidence in a sexual assault that took place in Lake Holcombe on July 4th, 2000.
Court records show a 21-year-old woman was raped, but there wasn’t enough evidence to make an arrest. That changed when Bealhen was convicted of second-degree sexual assault in Waukesha County last year, putting his DNA in the state crime lab database. Chippewa County District Attorney Wade Newell told WEAU-13 that a condom found at the scene of the assault in 2000 contained DNA from both Bealhen and the victim.
Bealhan is supposed to be released from prison in 2017, but a conviction in this case could land him an additional 60 years. His first court date is set for April 29th.
WAYY