A rape case dating back more than 25 years is moving forward in Centre County court after investigators used DNA evidence from a coffee cup to charge a suspect.
The Centre County District Attorney’s Office confirmed the case involving Kurt Rillema is now advancing in the county court system. Prosecutors said the preliminary hearing has been waived and negotiations are ongoing on a possible plea deal.
Rillema is accused of raping a 19-year-old Penn State student on a university golf course in 2000. Police said the woman was attacked while she was jogging.
In 2011, Penn State police first filed a John Doe arrest warrant using only DNA evidence. Rillema was not charged in Centre County until 2023, when police said the DNA evidence was a match.
The same DNA evidence also led to charges against Rillema in Michigan in a separate 1999 rape case on another golf course. Last year, Rillema pleaded no contest to criminal charges in that case and remains jailed in Michigan, as Centre County prosecutors waited for the Michigan case to be resolved.