Woman setting up yard sale raped in 2008, cops say. DNA on pillow case leads to arrest

A woman was setting up a yard sale in 2008 when a man forced her into the home and raped her, Tennessee police said.

Fifteen years later, DNA evidence on a pillowcase has led to the arrest of a 39-year-old man, according to an affidavit.

On Nov. 22, 2008, the woman was walking into the Memphis home when Antonio Hughes came up behind her and threatened to shoot her and her 6-year-old son, police said.

Then he pushed her into the home and fired a shot, officers said.

While the woman’s two sons were in the other room, he raped her at gunpoint and robbed her of $52 and her cellphone, police said.

He wiped himself with a pillowcase, which a family member found in the bushes nearby along with a condom, according to the affidavit. Both items was collected for evidence.

Years passed until an assistant district attorney general recommended the pillowcase and the condom be sent for DNA testing in August 2021.

The evidence was passed on to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, and DNA on the pillowcase returned a positive match for Hughes in June, police said.

The woman learned of the update in October and declined to prosecute.

Hughes, of Memphis, was arrested Dec. 4 and charged with aggravated rape, aggravated burglary and aggravated robbery, according to Shelby County records.

Attorney information for Hughes was not listed in the records.

This story was originally published December 5, 2023 at 12:16 PM with the headline "Woman setting up yard sale raped in 2008, cops say. DNA on pillow case leads to arrest."