DNA Links LA Home Invasion, Sex Assault To Notorious Maryland Murder

LOS ANGELES, CA — The family of a woman who was brutally murdered in Maryland earlier this year has turned their search to Los Angeles, where DNA evidence linked her killer to an unsolved home invasion burglary and sexual assault in the City of Angels.

Rachel Morin, 37, was reported missing in August after she failed to return home from a walk on a hiking trail in Harford County, Maryland.

After she was found dead near the trail, authorities matched DNA evidence found at the scene to a March 2023 home invasion burglary and sexual assault in South Los Angeles, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

Authorities are now searching for a man who appeared in doorbell camera footage leaving the scene of the home invasion in LA, according to the Harford County Sheriff's Office. The LAPD said that man is a suspect in the home invasion case.

Anyone who can identify this unknown male, or has additional information, is asked to contact the Harford County Sheriff’s Office at our tip line (410) 836-7788 or via email at RMtips@HarfordSheriff.org. pic.twitter.com/U1niUnCmwB
— Harford Sheriff (@Harford_Sheriff) August 18, 2023

“Initially the family was very hopeful,” Randolph Rice, an attorney working with Morin's family said in a release “Unfortunately, the trail has gone a bit cold because they have not been able to put a name to that DNA or to the video itself.”

After canvassing efforts in Maryland, authorities and Morin's family are doing the same in South LA: Fliers will be hand-delivered to more than 10,000 homes in the neighborhood, according to Rice.

"The goal of the campaign is to reach anyone who recognizes the perpetrator and inform them that the same man murdered Maryland mother Rachel Morin. We firmly believe that there are people within this neighborhood who can lead law enforcement to the suspect and stop him from attacking again," Rice said.

A reward of $30,000 has been offered to anyone who can positively identify Morin's killer and provide information leading to his capture and conviction.

Investigators described the suspect as approximately 5-foot-9, 160 lbs. with dark hair and a muscular build. He is between 20 and 30 years old and is believed to be Hispanic.

An LAPD spokesperson on Tuesday told Patch the department has no additional information to share about either case aside from a statement released in August.

"Los Angeles Police Department detectives have been in contact with Harford County Investigators to provide any and all information needed to bring the person responsible for such a brutal and senseless murder to justice," the statement reads. "We will continue to support the Harford County Sheriff’s Department as they move forward with their investigation, as well as provide any additional information we may uncover as we proceed with our burglary and assault investigation."

Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact the Harford County Sheriff's Office at 410-836-7788 or rmtips@harfordsheriff.org.

Kristin Danley-Greiner contributed to this report.