25 years later, DNA leads to arrest in sexual assault of boy

CHARLESTON, SC (WCSC) - Charleston Police say forensic technology has resulted in an arrest in a 25-year-old sexual assault of a child.

Tomogo James William McCord, 43, of Ridgeville, is charged with first-degree criminal sexual conduct with a minor, according to Charleston Police spokesman Charles Francis.

The victim was 10 years old on Aug. 10, 1993, when he was playing in a wood area behind a shopping center in the 2000 block of Savannah Highway, police say.

The victim told police he was approached by a man he had never seen before who asked him to help him look for his watch. Authorities say McCord was 17 at the time.

After about 30 minutes of walking around and looking for the watch, investigators say McCord suddenly maneuvered behind the victim and presented a knife which he placed against the victim’s throat and ordered him not to scream, an affidavit states.

After forcing the victim to the ground and sexually assaulting him, he ordered the victim to count to 10 before leaving the area, the affidavit states.

The victim walked home and told his dad what happened, and his dad then took him to Charleston Memorial Hospital where a sexual assault examination was completed, police say.

In 2018, the Charleston Police Department’s Family Violence Unit reopened the investigation into the assault and submitted evidence to the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division for further analysis.

Investigators were able to obtain a DNA profile from the evidence and ran it through the Combined DNA Index System, also known as CODIS, Francis said.

The DNA profile matched that of McCord, investigators say. An affidavit states McCord matched the basic description the victim provided at the time of the incident.

McCord was being held on a similar charge in the MacDougall Correctional Institution in Ridgeville, Francis said.

A bond hearing is set for Thursday, Francis said.