Summary
In November 2006, a woman was sexually assaulted by an unknown man in the Myrtle Beach area of South Carolina. The victim was working after-hours at a local business when a man she did not know attacked her in the parking lot and forced her inside a building. Once inside the building, the woman was sexually assaulted by the man. The Horry County Police Department responded, launching an investigation and the collection of evidence.
DNA evidence was collected and an STR profile was developed for the unknown suspect. The STR profile was uploaded to CODIS, but no match was found to any known individual. However, the profile did match to multiple other unsolved crime scene profiles that had been previously submitted to CODIS, linking the suspect to several unrelated crimes, though their identity remained unknown.
In December 2020, with no leads on the suspect’s identity, the Horry County Police Department submitted forensic evidence to Othram in The Woodlands, Texas. Othram scientists developed a DNA extract from the evidence and applied Forensic-Grade Genome Sequencing® to build a comprehensive DNA profile of the man. Using this profile, Othram’s in-house forensic genetic genealogy team conducted a genetic genealogy search and generated new investigative leads, which were returned to law enforcement.
Using this new information, a follow-up investigation was conducted by the law enforcement agency, which led investigators to identify the suspect as 60-year-old Randy Barnhill of Conway, South Carolina. Barnhill was arrested and on September 30, 2025, he pleaded guilty to rape, kidnapping, and burglary. He was sentenced to 18 years in prison.
The identification of Randy Barnhill marks the seventh publicly announced case in South Carolina solved with the help of technology developed by Othram. Although Barnhill’s DNA profile had been in CODIS for years, tied to multiple unsolved crimes, he could not be identified because his identity was not already in the database. This case illustrates why advanced DNA testing and forensic genetic genealogy are so critical: if a suspect’s identity is not in CODIS, traditional methods cannot provide answers. Barnhill was a serial predator who posed an ongoing threat, and solving this one case instantly helped resolve several other cases.
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Dan Miller
Director of Customer Service
Dan guides law enforcement agencies across the United States and internationally through every step of the forensic process—from crime scene to courtroom. He ensures investigators have the support and resources they need to navigate advanced DNA testing and maximize the impact of forensic evidence in their cases.