SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH: A teenager who killed a woman, 64, before sexually assaulting her has been arrested after a decade-long manhunt. The accused has been assigned a public defender and is due back in court on November 2, 2020. Adam Durborow, now 29, killed Sherry Black in November 2010, when he visited her bookstore. Durborow was only 19 years old. After almost 10 years, the alleged killer was pinpointed as the prime suspect in the case after scientists used a new DNA technique on the pieces of evidence. South Salt Lake Police worked with Parabon NanoLabs and were able to obtain a sample of Duborow’s DNA from a public place.
In 2010, Black was found partially clothed in her book shop ‘B&W Billiards and Books’ days after Thanksgiving. The scene was processed, DNA, fingerprints, and palm prints of a suspect were collected from the scene. Following an immediate investigation, a medical examiner ruled that she died from blunt force trauma and had suffered sharp injuries on her body. At the time The Salt Lake Tribune reported that there had been signs that Black had been sexually assaulted after she had died. Police have yet to publicize the motive for Black’s death.
Durborow has a long criminal history dating as far back as 2006 when he was charged for attempting to rape a child under the age of 14. Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill released details saying that Durborow has been officially charged with aggravated murder. He also faces charges related to the desecration of a human body, Gill added.
On October 7, 2020, Durborow’s DNA was collected and was submitted to the Utah Bureau of Forensic Services. On October 8, 2020, his DNA was a match to the DNA collected from Black’s bookstore nearly a decade ago. After the results came in, Durborow was taken into custody two days later where he confessed to the homicide, the police affidavit states. The affidavit also states that Durborow will face first-degree felony aggravated burglary charges. The South Salt Lake Police Department was the lead investigative agency in the case until 2018 when the Unified Police Department (UPD) took over.
Last month, Durborow’s family released a prepared statement to the Deseret News through their attorney, Pona Sitake, saying, “It has never crossed our minds that the events from a horrific and tragic event nearly a decade ago would have involved a member of our family. While we are devastated with the apparent involvement of our son Adam’s role in this event, we wish to simply express our condolences to the family, friends, and loved ones of Sherry Black. We cannot fathom the pain and sorrow they’ve felt through the last decade and we want to convey our sincerest sympathies for the renewed pain and suffering they will continue to endure. The ripple effects of this tragedy will be felt through the lives of all involved, including our own lives.”
In 2012, Black’s son-in-law, Greg Miller, the CEO of the Larry H. Miller Group, which owns the Utah Jazz, paid tribute to her saying: “She was a 64-year-old lady, unarmed, without an enemy in the world. Everybody loved her, and someone came in and brutally murdered her.”
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