Man sentenced after being convicted in 1994 Attleboro rape

A man was sentenced Monday after being convicted of rape Jan. 23 in connection to a cold case that dates back over three decades, according to a statement from the Bristol County District Attorney.

Eduardo Mendez, 51, of Guatemala, was convicted of aggravated rape after a jury trial at the Fall River Superior Court, according to officials. He was sentenced to serve 15 to 20 years in state prison for the conviction, the statement said.

On June 9, 1994, the victim, who was 36 years old at the time, was walking home in Attleboro when she was approached from behind by a group of men, according to the DA.

The victim was then dragged into a nearby apartment hallway and raped by Mendez, officials said. A 14-year-old passerby who heard the victim’s screams found her and brought her to the Attleboro police station after the men fled the scene, according to officials.

The victim was transported to Sturdy Memorial Hospital, where an evidence collection kit was performed. The kit went untested for decades until it was discovered in 2018 during an inventory of untested rape kits by the Bristol County District Attorney’s Office, according to the DA.

The Massachusetts State Police Crime Laboratory tested the kit and found a DNA match to Mendez, officials said.

After a warrant was obtained and Mendez was arrested in November 2022, a buccal swab in 2023 confirmed the DNA match, according to officials.

“I want to thank the prosecution team for their efforts and commend the victim for her perseverance over the last thirty years,” District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III said. “Without the rape kit being tested, this defendant would never have been charged.”