PRESS RELEASE
PITTSBURGH, Pa. — A Pennsylvania jury convicted Zaire Ransom-Nelson of armed robbery. The case marks the first conviction resulting from an investigative DNA lead generated by TrueAllele Investigative Database (TA-ID).
The lead came from DNA on a gun and magazine that had previously been reported as unsearchable. TA-ID used the existing electronic DNA data to connect the firearm evidence to Ransom-Nelson. No additional laboratory testing of the physical evidence was required.
On December 22, 2024, two armed men held up a Kohl’s store at gunpoint in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. An off-duty Lower Merion detective, who was shopping with his family, intervened before they could complete the robbery. The men fled, leaving the gun and magazine near the scene. Police recovered both items.
Cybergenetics later completed formal TrueAllele Casework analysis, and a Cybergenetics analyst testified about the DNA results at trial. The jury found Ransom-Nelson guilty of all armed robbery charges tied to the Kohl’s robbery.
The case shows that DNA reported as “unsearchable” may still contain information capable of generating an investigative lead. Agencies can revisit existing electronic DNA data without retesting the physical evidence.
Agencies with inconclusive, uninterpretable, or unsearchable DNA from unresolved cases can contact Cybergenetics to discuss whether their existing data may still generate investigative leads.
About Cybergenetics
Cybergenetics develops TrueAllele technology to help law enforcement recover useful information from complex, mixed, and previously inconclusive DNA evidence.
TrueAllele has assisted more than 750 governmental, nonprofit, and private organizations, including police departments, prosecutors, defense attorneys, innocence groups, and forensic laboratories.
Cybergenetics has provided TrueAllele match results in more than 1,500 case reports across 48 states. More than 200 state, local, federal, international, and private DNA laboratories have sent electronic DNA data to Cybergenetics for TrueAllele interpretation.
Commitment to transparency
Subject to access policies, Cybergenetics provides legal teams with executable TrueAllele software for independent case data analysis. The company also provides confidential access to its computer source code for scientific review.