NAHA, Okinawa — Two Okinawa crime lab technicians testified Thursday that they used the latest DNA profiling equipment in processing evidence in a case involving a former Kadena Exchange New Car salesman.
Dag Allen Thompson, 31, sat quietly between two guards in Naha District Court as he listened to six hours of technical testimony from Okinawa Prefectural Police technicians. Thompson is charged with raping a 27-year-old Naha woman in her home in June 1998 and committing a similar rape Aug. 22 in Chatan.
He has pleaded not guilty to charges of rape and burglary in both incidents.
Thompson, a former Marine, was arrested Oct. 15, after being identified by the 21-year-old Chatan woman, who glimpsed her attacker in light from her cell phone.
The prosecution claims DNA evidence extracted from semen collected at both crime scenes matches Thompson, who has been jailed since his arrest.
But for the second day in a row, the testimony did not get that far. At the end of Thursday’s session, the DNA profiling results had not been admitted into evidence. Defense attorney Toshimitsu Takaesu said he expected the DNA test results to be presented at the next hearing, set for June 9.
Instead, lab technicians Masanobu Omine and Eiko Uthima were quizzed about their department’s DNA “fragment analyzer,” an automated machine they described as being much easier to use and giving results more quickly than older systems.
“Our ability to identify the person has greatly improved,” said Uthima, head of the crime lab. He testified that the procedure is about as fail-safe as possible. “It’s not a very difficult procedure.”
Omine, in charge of maintaining the machine, said it was tested before processing evidence in the case and was working properly.
“There was no chance for any contamination during the procedure,” he said. However, he did admit that a chemical used to test Thompson’s DNA, which was taken from blood samples, had expired before the test.
“But we were assured by the company that makes the machine that exposed polymer could continue to be used four or five months after the expiration date,” Omine said, adding that he conducted a test of known DNA with the chemical and it was correctly matched.
Throughout the hearing, Thompson, clad in charcoal gray dress pants, a white shirt, striped tie and brown plastic jail-issue sandals, took notes and smiled occasionally at his Okinawan wife, who sat by herself in the rear of the courtroom.
The trial, packed with the press and spectators when it began in January, drew just two reporters and four spectators Thursday.
