Police Special Victims Detective Makes Arrest In 2013 New Haven House Party Rape, Long A Cold Case

NEW HAVEN, CT—Police and city officials announced an arrest made in a 2013 rape that occurred at a New Haven house party.

Mayor Justin Elicker and Chief David Zannelli will provide an update in an afternoon media briefing.

Described as a cold case, on July 5, 2013, the New Haven Police Department began investigating the sexual assault, according to police spokesperson Officer Christian Bruckhart.

The victim reported having been sexually assaulted by a male, later identified as Moses Watkis, 36, of Waterbury. The case was unsolved at the time and remained dormant until the department was notified of a "DNA hit, which linked the New Haven assault to another sexual assault case that occurred in Waterbury in 2021." In that case, Watkis was arrested, Bruckhart said, and judicial records show. Watkis was charged by Waterbury police with first-degree sexual assault with force for a rape that happened in that city on Aug. 27, 2021, according to court records.

The New Haven cold case was assigned to Detective Samantha Romano, of the Special Victim’s Unit, working under the supervision of Sergeant Cherelle Carr. Romano was able to secure an arrest warrant for Watkis for first-degree sexual assault and first-degree unlawful restraint.

Watkis was taken into custody Jan. 30, Bruckhart said. Judicial records show that he was assigned a $750,000 bond. He's not been released from custody, records show, and is next due in court Feb. 18. Watkis is being held at Cheshire Correctional Institution, records show.