Lawrenceville Police announced an arrest on Wednesday in connection to a series of violent rapes in 1986, saying a break was made thanks to recent forensic analysis that allowed investigators to finally identify a suspect after four decades.

The department said 60-year-old Glenn Plybon was identified and arrested in part thanks to investigative genealogy. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation ᴀssisted with the case.

According to Lawrenceville PD, multiple adult female victims reported Sєxual ᴀssaults in their apartments during the summer of 1986, and the suspect “ultimately fled each scene prior to law enforcement being contacted.”

“At the time of the incidents, investigators recognized several similarities between the cases, including the method of entry, the suspect’s physical description,” a release said. “Despite extensive investigative efforts, including interviews and identification procedures, the case remain unsolved for decades.”

The cases were reopened last year, however, with resubmitted evidence for forensic testing. The GBI shared that it reached out to the police department last July as it worked to ᴀssist local agencies with CODIS forensic matches, which would identify DNA from multiple crime scenes from the same offender.

The GBI shared that its cold case unit and Lawrenceville Police partnered with Othram, Inc. for advanced DNA testing. With those efforts, Plyborn was identified as a suspect. His arrest came on March 18, charging him with three counts of rape in connection with three women in the summer of 1986, according to the GBI.