DNA Match Linked Him to Two Other Crimes
A Queens man was convicted after a bench trial of raping three women in Hempstead between 2015 and 2020. A DNA swab taken from the defendant after his arrest for a rape in 2020 linked him to the other two violent crimes.
On January 25, 2015, Adell Hardwick approached a 42-year-old woman and walked with her to an abandoned house at 194 Main Street in Hempstead. The defendant then raped the victim in the house. After a struggle, she was able to get away and contacted police. The victim was taken to Nassau University Medical Center (NUMC) after the assault where a DNA swab was collected during a sexual assault examination.
On June 4, 2019, Hardwick approached a 51-year-old woman who was meeting with friends at Denton Green Park in Hempstead. After her friends left, he grabbed the woman and dragged her into the bushes where he raped her. The victim was able to escape and contacted police. She was brought to NUMC where a sexual assault examination was conducted, and a DNA swab was collected.
On January 30, 2020, Hardwick approached at 55-year-old woman on the street in Hempstead and forced her into an abandoned garage. He violently strangled the victim, raped her, and fled the scene. The victim contacted police and was immediately brought to NUMC for an examination where a DNA sample was collected.
Hardwick was arrested on April 23, 2020, for the January attack by detectives with the Nassau County Police Department’s Special Victims Squad. A buccal swab obtained after the defendant’s arrest was compared to the DNA samples retrieved after each of the incidents and positively identified Hardwick as the attacker.
Hardwick, 36, was convicted on September 6, 2024 after a bench trial before Judge Teresa Corrigan of three counts of first-degree rape (a Class B violent felony), predatory sexual assault (a Class A-II felony); and three counts of first-degree criminal sexual act (a Class B violent felony). He was acquitted of one count of predatory sexual assault. Hardwick is scheduled to be sentenced on September 26, 2024. He faces up to 25 years to life in prison.
“This defendant is a serial rapist with a long history of violent crimes,” said Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly. “He used his knowledge of Hempstead to identify secluded and abandoned areas and violently, forcibly raped women he had just met. The bravery of these women in coming forward to police after the defendant’s monstrous attacks led to the collection of DNA samples that together were the linchpin to his prosecution and to finally seeing justice for what they endured. My Cold Case Unit will continue to doggedly pursue leads and reevaluate evidence to solve these crimes.”