Arrest Made In 1981 Cold Case Involving Rape, Assault In Silver Spring

SILVER SPRING, MD — Detectives from the Montgomery County Department of Police identified the suspect in a 41-year-old open rape case, leading to the arrest of a suspect in North Carolina on Monday, according to a release.

In March, cold case detectives Alyson Dupouy and Tara Augustin, and forensic specialists from the Montgomery County Crime Lab, Biology Unit submitted evidence collected from an April 1981 unsolved rape case to the Combined DNA Index System for additional testing, according to the release.

On Oct. 31, the FBI’s National DNA Index System identified a match between the evidence and the DNA of 65-year-old Marion Edward Pearson Jr., of Durham, North Carolina.

Pearson was a Prince George's County resident in the early 1980s and a frequent visitor to the University of Maryland/College Park area, according to police. Between 1980 and 1999, he was arrested several times for assault, indecent exposure and peeping-tom.

In 2020, Pearson was released from a North Carolina prison after serving a 22-year sentence for a string of first-degree rapes. His criminal history in the state includes charges for occupied burglaries with the intent of sexual assault, peeping-tom, trespassing, rape and robbery, according to police.

Investigators said Pearson's DNA was matched to evidence collected in an open case involving two 1981 sexual assaults that occurred in Silver Spring. In the first case, a woman was assaulted and raped on April 20, near the 1800 block of University Boulevard West. A second victim was attacked and sexually assaulted on June 13, in the area of Connecticut Avenue near Denfield Road.

The pattern of the attack and suspect description in the second case were similar to those in the April 20 rape, according to police. DNA evidence was also collected from the earlier attack.

Due to these similarities and the CODIS match, Montgomery County detectives obtained a warrant for Pearson's arrest. With the help of the Durham County Sheriff’s Department, he was taken into custody without incident.

Pearson is awaiting extradition to Maryland, where he faces charges of first-degree rape, false imprisonment, robbery, and assault for the April 1981 rape and attempted first-degree rape, false imprisonment, and assault for the June 1981 assault.

Given Pearson's extensive criminal history in Maryland and North Carolina, police believe there may be other victims. Anyone who believes they may be a victim of Pearson or who has information about this case is asked to call the Major Crimes Division at 240-773-5070 or contact Crime Solvers of Montgomery County toll-free at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477). Callers may remain anonymous.