Decades after DNA evidence emerged in two chilling Massachusetts cases—a murder in 1991 and a rape in 1993—investigators have finally unraveled the mystery behind these cold cases thanks to forensic genetic genealogy.
Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz announced on Thursday that DNA evidence from the tragic murder of Cherie Bishop in 1991 and the brutal rape of Donna Bell in 1993 had been submitted to the Combined DNA Index System, a crucial step in resolving these long-standing investigations.
“For years, the families of Bishop and Bell lived without closure, burdened by unanswered questions about their loved ones’ fates,” Cruz stated. “These tragedies have cast long shadows over their lives.”
The investigations revealed that Cherie Bishop, aged 28, was discovered dead in June 1991, strangled in a wooded area near her apartment in Brockton. Two years later, Donna Bell suffered a horrific rape in the same city.
Authorities have now identified the perpetrator of both heinous acts as Robert Carey, a resident of Brockton, who passed away in 2025. Carey’s connection to these crimes was confirmed through advanced DNA analysis techniques, bringing some semblance of resolution to these haunting cases.
According to Cruz, Bishop was found in Mulberry Park, clad only in socks and a diamond earring. The cause of her death was determined to be mechanical asphyxiation, officially classified as a homicide.
Investigators collected DNA evidence through a rape kit and analyzed it at the time, but no suspect was identified. The evidence was later retested as forensic genealogy techniques continued to advance.
A rape kit was also collected in Bell’s case.
Cruz said Bell was abducted from the street and sexually assaulted by a man in a vehicle, who threatened to strangle her if she resisted.
She managed to escape after, authorities said, she seized a sharp object. Bell died in 2021.
On June 25, 1991, the body of Cherie Bishop, 28, was found face down and nude, wearing red socks and a single diamond earring. (Plymouth County District Attorney)
Cruz said investigators had known since 2016 that the cases were connected, but available DNA evidence did not identify a suspect until advances in forensic genetic genealogy provided a breakthrough.
“Their exhaustive investigative work, combined with a DNA sample match, identified Robert Carey as the perpetrator,” Cruz said.
On April 4, 1993, Donna Bell was walking on Annis Avenue in Brockton, and a white man driving a van grabbed her, Plymouth County District Attorney Cruz said. (Plymouth County District Attorney)
The district attorney’s office said Othram, a Texas forensic genealogy lab, identified a likely relative of the suspect, helping investigators ultimately identify Carey.
Carey, who died of natural causes in June 2025 at 64, lived at the Brockton Veterans Administration Medical Center, about 1.5 miles from both crime scenes, the district attorney’s office said.
“None of this would have been possible without the tremendous effort and devoted work of the Massachusetts State Police, Brockton Police, the State Police Crime Lab, Trooper Joe Collett, Assistant District Attorneys Samantha Mullin and Jennifer Sprague, as well as Forensic Scientist Krista Lundgren,” Cruz said.
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