A 43-year-old man has been convicted of a 1998 sex assault of a 14-year-old girl based, in part, on DNA evidence.
Ricky Rivera was convicted Wednesday by a Weld County jury of sex assault on a child, according to a Weld County District Attorney’s Office media release.
The incident happened Feb. 23, 1998, in Greeley when Rivera was 25 and homeless, according to the release.
Rivera met the victim, who had ditched school and was intoxicated, in downtown Greeley where she was walking with friends. They were to a nearby home where the victim was raped.
The girl later told her parents what had happened. They took her to a hospital where she underwent a sex assault exam, including a DNA swab.
In 2013, Greeley police sent the 1998 DNA evidence to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. The CBI entered the evidence into a federal index and there was a match to Rivera.
In 2015, the Weld County prosecutors field a case charging Rivera.
The jury came back with a quick verdict, according to the release, finding Rivera guilty in the cold case.
Kieran Nicholson: 303-954-1822, knicholson@denverpost.com or @kierannicholson
